Parents' perceptions of their children's death concept.

To examine the differences between parents' and nonparents' beliefs regarding the concept of death in children, 352 individuals answered a demographic survey. Questions concerning beliefs about the age at which children develop the concept of the irreversibility of death were included on the survey. Parents believed that the concept is developed at an earlier age than did nonparents, and also believed that the concept is developed at an earlier age than has been revealed by most research.