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Despite the vast developments in research on loss and grief, dominant grief models fall short in reflecting the comprehensive issues grieving persons are facing. Three causes seem to be at play: grief is usually understood to be connected to death and other types of loss are under-researched; the majority of research is done from the field of psychology and on pathological forms of grief, hardly integrating research from other disciplines; and the existential suffering related to grief is not recognized or insufficiently integrated in the dominant models. In this paper, we propose an integrated process model (IPM) of loss and grief, distinguishing five dimensions of grief: physical, emotional, cognitive, social, and spiritual. The integrated process model integrates therapies, tools, and models within different scientific theories and paradigms to connect disciplines and professions. The comprehensive and existential understanding of loss and grief has relevance for research, clinical settings and community support. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this mixed methods systematic review was to identify factors associated with anticipatory grief, post-death grief, and prolonged grief in informal carers of people living with Motor Neuron Disease (MND) to inform future research and practice. Six electronic databases were searched and two quantitative and eight qualitative studies were identified. Five overarching themes were generated through thematic synthesis. The findings suggest that there are factors that may affect different grieving processes. It might be particularly important to target some factors prior and after the death of the person living with MND such as the knowledge about the progression of the disease, changes in relationships, anxiety and depressive symptoms of carers, and planning for death of the care recipient. Factors that may affect all three grieving processes were also identified such as negative experiences of caregiving, experiences of losses, end of life and psychological support, and emotional avoidance coping. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study was to understand how active coping with extreme loss takes place when creating memorial playgrounds, as well as in relation to existing memorial playgrounds. Using qualitative methods and drawing from 63 cases, the research enriches our understanding of bereavement by revealing the central mechanisms through which active coping takes place and by presenting the distinct elements that the mechanisms are composed of. The study contributes to the research on bereavement by showing how active coping takes place both as an outcome of and during the memorial creation process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study aimed to examine the variables that play a role in the process of prolonged grief within the framework of the cognitive-behavioral model. Participants (N = 475) from Turkey took part in a cross-sectional questionnaire survey. The study used structural equation modeling to test a hypothesized model via AMOS v23. After testing two options, the final model was found to be good fit for the data. Results suggested the importance of adopting a comprehensive approach to prolonged grief interventions which includes the loss- and relationship-related factors as well as emotion regulation difficulties, autobiographic memory characteristics, and the grief cognitions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, people are experiencing unprecedented cumulative loss and grief. Guided by life course theory, we used inductive qualitative analysis and explored young adults' (N = 86) written accounts of their earliest and most significant losses associated with COVID-19, as well as their coping mechanisms. Overall, participants experienced substantial loss, especially losses related to their education and social life/events. We discuss five subthemes related to approaches to coping and five subthemes related to barriers to coping. Our findings are relevant to informing strategies that support adapting to significant loss in early adulthood, beyond the pandemic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research on grief is moving away from stage and task-oriented models. Instead, loss is reconceptualized as an event that will change mourners’ identity over time. The authors envision dynamic grief work as flowing from a dialogical engagement with loss, death, and illness; a terrain in which to begin a conversation with soul. A soul perspective challenges the prevailing call for efficiency, engages the voice of loss, and aims to bring value to the experience more than resolution. The process of rebecoming following bereavement is assisted by creating image-rich narratives that attend to and allow grief to express itself. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Researchers today consider childhood bereavement one of the most traumatic experiences that can befall a child. Nevertheless, most models of bereavement currently limit themselves to dealing with adult grief and primarily explores the internal processes associated with recovery. Based on a study which conducted focus groups with 39 Danish adolescents (aged 9-17), this article presents The Model of Loss Navigation in Adolescence. Centered on the three factors--Being Different, Being in Control, and Being in Grief--the model highlight the social conventions children have to navigate and how these influences both their day-to-day lives and their road to recovery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 2001, in Entre-os-Rios, Portugal, a bridge fell on Douro River; all 59 passengers from 1 bus and 3 cars died and 36 bodies have never been recovered. The objective is to reveal the cumulative risk from multiple losses and unrecovered bodies, 10 years after, compared with grievers from road accidents. There are 2 groups of relatives of victims: from this tragedy (n = 20), with at least 1 unrecovered body; and from road traffic accidents (n = 20), with the same time after loss. The prevalence of prolonged grief was 95% and for traumatic stress was 70%. The associated factors of multiple losses and unrecovered bodies increase the long-term risk (relative risk = 1.6 to 2.8;R2 = .20 to .28) for prolonged and traumatic grief, providing evidence that the absence of body is an important long-term factor. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Many studies have examined the trauma bereaved parents experience. The current study focuses on the role that the Holocaust’s memory plays in the bereavement experience of parents who have lost a child in a terrorist attack in Israel. Forty bereaved parents were interviewed, using semistructured in-depth interviews. Bereaved parents related to the Holocaust memory as a meaningful experience in their private bereavement. The parents expressed dialectic feelings concerning their loss, personal victimization on the one hand and personal strength, and growth on the other hand. It seems that memory reconstruction of the Holocaust can be used as a coping resource. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The study aimed to explore the bereavement experiences of women after miscarriage. Ten women who experienced miscarriages of their first child were interviewed. Verbatim interviews were analyzed through the principles of Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis that yielded eight super ordinate themes: shattered planning; physical and emotional pain; reaction to miscarriage; transformed marital relationships; in-laws’ support; blame attribution; identity and well-being; and posttraumatic growth. The participants shared the constant psychological and physical pain they felt after miscarriage. The results reveal that cultural awareness is crucial when addressing the healthcare needs of women who undergo similar reproductive losses in different cultures. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The authors compared grief severity and its predictors in two equivalent college student samples who had experienced the death of a pet (n = 211) or a person (n = 146) within the past 2 years. The human death sample reported higher grief severity,p < .01, but effect sizes were small (ds = .28–.30). For both samples, closeness to the deceased was overwhelmingly the strongest predictor of grief severity; other predictors generally dropped out with closeness added to the model. Results highlight the importance of including closeness to deceased in grief research, and its centrality in understanding grief counseling clients. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This article explores the role of ambivalence in grief therapy within a narrative framework. From this perspective, change starts with the occurrence of innovative moments, which can be nullified by reaffirmation of the problematic self-narrative as a sign of ambivalence. This study analyzed ambivalence in six complicated grief cases using the “Return to the Problem Coding System.” Markers of ambivalence emerged in all cases, with a decreasing profile in cases with greater symptomatic improvement, suggesting an association between clinical change and ambivalence evolution in therapy. Addressing ambivalence may bring to light important aspects of client’s self-reconstruction after a major loss. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When a person goes missing, those left behind mourn an ambiguous loss where grief can be disenfranchised. Different to bereavement following death, hope figures into this experience as a missing person has the potential to return. This review explores hope for families of missing people. Lived experience of ambiguous loss was deconstructed to reveal responses punctuated by hope, which had practical and psychological implications for those learning to live with an unresolved absence. Future lines of enquiry must address the dearth of research exploring the role of hope, unresolved grief, and its clinical implications when a person is missing. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Yearning is common in situations involving loss, and a hallmark of complicated grief. To study yearning empirically, the present study develops the Yearning in Situations of Loss scale (YSL), which measures yearning bereavement, romantic breakup, or homesickness. In Study 1, we identified shared characteristics across situations of loss, tested an initial version and removed items with the lowest item-scale reliability. In Study 2, the 21-item YSL was compared to scales of anxiety, depression, and loneliness, and existing scales, relevant to each loss situation. The YSL showed discriminant and convergent validity that applies to bereavement, romantic breakup, and homesickness. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This study examined the influence of pre-immigration trauma on the acculturation process of refugees, as reflected in the manifestations of their continuing bonds with native cultures. Six African refugees who sought refuge in Egypt because of wars and political persecution were interviewed about the circumstances of their departure from their home countries, as well as their life experiences in Egypt. All participants kept continuing bonds with their native cultures, but these bonds manifested differently depending on their ability to assimilate pre-immigration trauma and cultural losses. Participants who successfully assimilated both pre-immigration trauma and cultural losses developed continuing bonds with their native cultures that helped them (a) integrate the Egyptian culture into their life experiences and (b) tolerate difficult political conditions in Egypt. Participants who could not assimilate their pre-immigration trauma and cultural losses also developed continuing bonds with their native culture, but these bonds only provided them with solace. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explored the impact of prior personal experience with grief on self-reported personal and professional development of graduate students in nursing, social work, counseling, pastoral care, and genetic counseling involved as cofacilitators in bereavement support groups, and of medical students observing interdisciplinary inpatient palliative care. Personal experience with death of a family member or close friend was reported in 80% of the 35 participating students. Findings suggest that grief and the students' construction of the meaning of their loss can mediate the students' developing sense of self as a professional helper. Active engagement with suffering persons, the opportunity for self-disclosure and reflection, and teacher-facilitator provision of emotional guidance and modeling contributed positively to learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite much recent theorizing, evidence regarding the temporal relationship of sense-making to adjustment following bereavement remains relatively sparse. This study examined the role of searching for and making sense of loss in late-life spousal bereavement, using prospective, longitudinal data from the Changing Lives of Older Couples (CLOC) project (N = 250). Searching at 6 and 18 months post-loss predicted both contemporaneous and subsequent grief. Sense-making was not related to grief for this sample. In contrast, sense-making at 6 months and 18 months predicted positive affect at 48 months, although searching had no prospective effect on this outcome. Searching at 6 months predicted depression at 18 months. Results are interpreted in terms of meaning-oriented theories of bereavement and processes promoting both adaptive and maladaptive outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A systematic review of the literature on predictors of complicated grief (CG) was undertaken with the aim of clarifying the current knowledge and to inform future planning and work in CG following bereavement. Predictors of CG prior to the death include previous loss, exposure to trauma, a previous psychiatric history, attachment style, and the relationship to the deceased. Factors associated with the death include violent death, the quality of the caregiving or dying experience, close kinship relationship to the deceased, marital closeness and dependency, and lack of preparation for the death. Perceived social support played a key role after death, along with cognitive appraisals and high distress at the time of the death. Inconsistent definitions of CG and measurement tools were noted in the earlier studies reviewed. Limitations identified in the studies included use of cross-sectional designs, heterogeneous samples, high attrition, demographic differences between cases and controls, differences in length of time since death, and differences in types of death experienced. Notwithstanding these limitations, some consistent findings have emerged. Further research into conceptualizations of CG in terms of attachment theory and constructivist and cognitive-behavioral concepts of finding purpose and meaning after bereavement is warranted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This exploratory study examines veterinarians' perceptions of how they offer social support to grieving clients. Because many clients cannot find the social support they would like from other sources when grieving the death of a pet, the role of the vet in offering support becomes increasingly important. The results indicate that vets perceive that they do offer social support; however, they have not been provided with training in how to do so. Limitations to the study and future directions are also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined self-presentation in the online dating profiles of 241 widowed and 280 divorced individuals between 18 and 40 years old. A content analysis of open-ended user-generated profiles assessed the presence or absence of various themes, including the user's marital status, the backstory of their lost relationship, and whether they engaged in sense-making regarding that lost relationship. Results indicated that about one-third of widowed individuals discussed their loss in their profiles. In addition, about one-third of the widowed profiles included explicit reference to a philosophy of life, and about 16% mentioned sense-making or cognitive reappraisals of their bereavement. Many profiles included some articulation of a vision of a future partnership. Results also revealed a significant correlation between widowed individuals including a backstory and their likelihood of exhibiting sense-making in their profiles. Finally, unlike the widowed users, divorcees provided much briefer mentions of their lost relationships, used less sense-making language, and were less likely to articulate an explicit vision of future partnerships. Overall, the results suggest that for widowed individuals, online dating sites may function as venues to explore their past experiences and engage in the construction of a post-loss identity or a post-loss “ideal self.” [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to identify what suicidally bereaved persons', particularly close relatives' and loved ones', perceptions of their need for support were and their experiences of support directed at meeting those needs. A total of 166 persons who were bereaved by suicide completed a questionnaire consisting of both closed and open-ended questions. Overall, 94% of participants indicated a need for help to manage their grief, but only 44% received help. Most participants indicated a great or significant need for help. In addition, only 40% of those who received professional support felt satisfied with it. The authors concluded that there is a significant gap between need for support and the quality and provision of professional support services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The self-concept is often considered to be a personal resource that individuals may use to cope with life stressors, but little is known about how this entity might itself change in response to profound stress. The present study examines structural change in self-concept following conjugal loss in later life. Analyses were conducted on data collected from 57 widows every 4 months over the first 2 years post-loss. The first objective was to explore the adequacy of an operational definition of the self-concept as a latent construct lying at the confluence of self-esteem, perceived environmental mastery, and optimism. Because confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) supported this theoretically based conceptualization, the second objective of the study was to model stability and change in the structure of the self-concept over the 2-year study period. Results suggested that there is both stability and change in the self-system during the adjustment to major life stress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bereavement-specific written disclosure trials have generally demonstrated null effects, but these studies have not directed the focus of writing. This randomized controlled trial compared directed writing that focused on either sense-making or benefit-finding, both associated with adjustment to loss, to traditional, non-directed emotional disclosure and a control condition. Bereaved undergraduates (n = 68) completed three 20-min writing sessions over 1 week. Intervention effects were found on prolonged grief disorder, depressive, and posttraumatic stress symptoms 3 months postintervention, and the benefit-finding condition appeared particularly efficacious. Physical health improved over time in all treatment groups. Findings suggested that directing written disclosure on topics associated with adjustment to bereavement may be useful for grieving individuals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article is based on a qualitative study examining the experiences of parents that lost a son during military service in Israel and consequently choose to give birth to another child. Seven couples and 3 mothers were interviewed for the study, and their interviews were analyzed using a phenomenological-hermeneutic approach. Three main themes were extracted from parents' descriptions of their experiences: (a) “From the place where pain and sadness was sown, a new smile was grown,” relating to transforming the experience of loss into a new meaning for life; (b) “No to a child memorial,” focusing on parents' awareness of the burden placed on the child who was born; and (c) “Different parenting,” dealing with participant's parenting following their loss. The study's findings are discussed in the context of literature dealing with reconstructing meaning through coping and bereavement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The authors examined predictors of complicated grief (CG) in Norwegians 2 years after bereavement in the 2004 South-East Asian tsunami. A cross-sectional postal survey retrospectively covering disaster experiences and assessing CG according to the Inventory of Complicated Grief yielded 130 respondents (35 directly disaster-exposed and 95 not directly exposed), with 47.7% screening CG positive. They identified positive associations between CG and being female, losing a child or spouse, and time to death confirmation, and negative associations with previous losses, being employed, and receiving social support. Direct exposure did not increase CG risk. Support service providers should be aware of this high prevalence of severe, persistent grief. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined type of continuing bonds (CB) expression in relation to risk factors for complicated grief and measures of bereavement-related adjustment. Externalized CB expressions involving illusions and hallucinations with the deceased were distinguished from internalized CB expressions involving use of the deceased as an autonomy promoting secure base. 502 bereaved participants completed over the internet a CB measure assessing externalized and internalized CB along with various known risk-factor measures that included cause of death (i.e., violent vs. non-violent death), responsibility for the death, and attachment style as well as measures of psychological adjustment that included complicated grief symptoms, perceived physical health, and personal growth. As predicted, externalized CB was positively associated with violent death and responsibility for the death, whereas internalized CB was negatively associated with these risk factors as well as uniquely positively linked to personal growth. The implications of the findings for the role of CB in adjustment are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Theoretical arguments and empirical evidence demonstrate the limited utility of a narrow construction of “normal” grief. Sudden and violent death, the young age of the deceased, and perceptions of death preventability are associated with grief reactions that extend beyond an expected grief response. Interviews were conducted with 21 adults bereaved through the death of a family member in a traffic crash. We present their attempts to resist notions of “working through” grief and “recovery” from it and consider how the participants' constructions of an alternative discourse, or normative narrative, possess the potential to challenge a prevailing grief discourse. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research has consistently reported that social support from family, friends, and colleagues is an important factor in the bereaved person's ability to cope after the loss of a loved one. This study used a Theory of Planned Behavior framework to identify those factors that predict a person's intention to interact with, and support, a grieving person. Questionnaire data from 160 university students showed that together behavioral, normative, and control beliefs and past behavior significantly predicted intention after controlling for gender and past experience. Behavioral beliefs, followed by control beliefs and past behavior, were the most important predictors of intention to support a grieving person. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study comprehensively explored parental bereavement and adjustment at 6 months post-loss due to childhood cancer. Interviews were conducted with 18 mothers and 13 fathers. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and analyzed based on qualitative methodology. A model describing early parental bereavement and adaptation emerged with 3 domains: Perception of the Child, describing bereavement and adjustment prior to and after the loss; Perception of Others, including relationships with partners, surviving children, and their social network; and Perception of the World, exploring parents' perceived meanings of the experience in the context of their worldview. Domains are illustrated by quotes. Profiles of parental bereavement emerged. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The division of labor, together with modern transport systems and certain cultural practices, enables the separation of home and work. This creates a setting for mourning very different from pre-urban societies. Three bereavement theories (reminder theory, dual process oscillation theory, and the importance of groups in the construction of continuing bonds) provide tools for understanding the dynamics of grief when the mourner inhabits two separate worlds, those of home and work. The article sketches how this might illuminate a number of home-work scenarios. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

How people respond at work may have a critical part to play in how bereaved or terminally ill colleagues manage their grief and their lives. Although counselors, human resources, occupational health staff, and others may have an important back-up role to play, pivotal support needs to come from line managers, colleagues, and, where they exist, trade union or other staff representatives. If bereavement is seen exclusively as a specialist area, managers and others can be discouraged and feel disabled from intelligently supporting the staff with whom they work. Alternatively it can be a reason for ignoring the issue. A workplace culture is needed where people are inspired and empowered to be human and humane for the sake of the motivation and indirectly the effectiveness of the people who work there. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Studies in adult populations have shown that symptoms of complicated grief (CG) constitute a form of bereavement-related distress distinct from symptoms of depression and anxiety. The purpose of this article is to replicate these findings in two samples of bereaved adolescents by investigating the latent structure of symptoms of CG, anxiety, and depression measured by self-report questionnaires. The first study (N = 245) focuses on one of the most prevalent losses in adolescence, namely the death of a grandparent. In the second study (N = 351) the authors further the examination of the distinctiveness question by inspecting not only the latent structure of CG, depression, and anxiety but also whether the distinctiveness of the emerging latent structure holds across subgroups of bereaved adolescents suffering different types of losses. Confirmatory factor analyses in both studies confirm the distinctiveness of CG from depression and anxiety in a younger population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There has been an evolution in the understanding of the nature of grief since S. Freud's initial work, Mourning and Melancholia (1917/1953). Mental health practitioners and researchers have established new models to aid in the conceptualization and treatment of grief issues. The purpose of this study was to examine the opinions of experts in the field of grief regarding elements of a new model of adult bereavement, Martin and Doka's (2000) adaptive grieving styles, using the Delphi Method to identify points of consensus. A survey of 20 experts in the field of thanatology reached consensus on 21 items in which the panelists addressed the uniqueness of the griever, recognized there are multiple factors that influence the grieving process (i.e., culture, personality, and gender), that most bereaved individuals use both cognitive and affective strategies in adapting to bereavement, and that bereaved individuals experience both internal and external pressures to grieve in particular ways. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined the impact of attachment on grief severity following the death of a pet. Seventy-one participants who had lost a dog or cat within the past year completed a set of measures that included an attachment measure assessing individual differences in attachment anxiety and avoidance, strength of the past attachment to the pet, the continuing bond with the deceased pet, social support, and complicated grief symptoms. Attachment anxiety and strength of the past attachment to the pet were each uniquely predictive of more severe grief. Furthermore, the continuing bond to the deceased pet partially mediated the impact of strength of the past attachment to the pet on grief severity. No significant mediators of the effect of attachment anxiety on grief were found, however. The results highlight the importance of distinguishing strength of attachment from attachment security in examining the effect of attachment on response to pet loss. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Two-Track Model of Bereavement Questionnaire (TTBQ) was designed to assess response to loss over time. Respondents were 354 persons who completed the 70-item self-report questionnaire constructed in accordance with the Two-Track Model of Bereavement. Track I focuses on the bereaved's biopsychosocial functioning and Track II concerns the bereaved's ongoing relationship to the range of memories, images, thoughts, and feeling states associated with the deceased. Factor analysis identified 5 factors that accounted for 51% of the variance explained. In accord with the theoretical and clinical model, 3 factors were primarily associated with the relationship to the deceased (Track II): Active Relational Grieving, Close and Positive Relationship, and Conflictual Relationship; and 2 factors with aspects of functioning (Track I): General Biopsychosocial Functioning and Traumatic Perception of the Loss. Construct and concurrent validity were examined and were found satisfactory. Differences by kinship, cause of death, gender, and time elapsed were examined across the 5 factors, the total TTBQ, and the ITG. The new measure is shown to have both construct and concurrent validity. Discussions of the results and implications for the measurement of response to loss conclude the article. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Item response theory modeling was applied to the data of 1,321 bereaved individuals who completed the Dutch version of the Inventory of Complicated Grief—Revised (ICG-R)—a 29-item self-report measure of complicated grief (CG). The authors aimed to examine the information that each of the ICG-R items contributes to the measurement of overall CG severity and to detect possible differences between subgroups of mourners in the way CG items are endorsed. Findings showed that items differed in their ability to distinguish individual differences in CG severity. Items that discriminated best between low and high CG were “feeling numb,” “feeling that the future holds no meaning or purpose,” and “unable imagining life being fulfilling without the lost person.” Items were reasonably well dispersed across the range of CG severity. There was little evidence of differential item functioning between gender groups and victims of violent vs. non-violent loss. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The loss of a baby is always hard to cope with and the grieving process is likely to be difficult. Interventions to work with Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) families have improved grieving outcomes for many but the needs of Maori fathers are not well understood or catered to by existing services. This article presents narrative data from Maori fathers who have lost a baby to SIDS and analyzes these narratives in the context of the literature and of traditional Maori constructs about grief. The authors document a rarely discussed Maori concept, “the attainment of mauri tau,” as the desired outcome of the grieving process; and begin a discussion around the changing face of the Maori grieving process and its implications for the grieving practices of Maori men. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Surprisingly little research has examined the widely held assumption that religion and spirituality are generally helpful in adjusting to bereavement. A systematic literature search located 73 empirical articles that examined religion/spirituality in the context of bereavement. The authors describe the multidimensional nature of religion/spirituality and use this framework to organize and integrate the findings of these empirical articles. Overall, results suggest that relations between religion and adjustment to bereavement are generally positive but inconsistent and vary depending in part on how religion/spirituality is measured. The authors conclude with a critique of the current research and directions for future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the first Irish study to examine a hospital-based bereavement care program, 1 year's cohort of bereaved people was surveyed. A response rate of over 40% provided 339 completed questionnaires from bereaved next-of-kin. The findings suggest that a tiered pyramid model of bereavement care (the Beaumont model) may be functional in a number of ways. The outreach aspect of the service is successful in providing additional support and information through telephone and postal contact to people at a distance or with mobility difficulties. Those bereaved by sudden death are twice as likely to access the service as those for whom death was expected. These, and other findings, are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigated whether 3 self-system beliefs—fear of abandonment, coping efficacy, and self-esteem—mediated the relations between stressors and caregiver-child relationship quality and parentally bereaved youths' general grief and intrusive grief thoughts. Cross-sectional (n = 340 youth) and longitudinal (n = 100 youth) models were tested. In the cross-sectional model, fear of abandonment mediated the effects of stressors and relationship quality on both measures of grief and coping efficacy mediated the path from relationship quality to general grief. Fear of abandonment showed a marginal prospective mediational relation between stressors and intrusive grief thoughts. After excluding the mediators, relationship quality showed a direct prospective relation to intrusive grief thoughts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The death of a child is an incomprehensible and devastating loss. Grief for parents is lifelong, becoming the connection between parent and child. To extend and deepen current understanding of parental grief, a new survey instrument was developed, combining quantitative and qualitative measures. The qualitative findings from this combined methodological study are presented. Parental grief themes are derived from the respondents' descriptions of their grief resulting in a reformulation of parental grief. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An abundance of literature on caregivers of individuals with dementia has been written since the mid-1980s. However, most of this literature focused on the experience of stress, burden, and depression in caregivers, thus excluding the grief experience that also accompanies the caregiving experience. The purpose of this multimethod study is to describe the lived experience of 44 spouses and adult children who are caregivers of persons with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (ADRD) and scored high on the Marwit and Meuser Caregiver Grief Inventory, Short Form (MM-CGI-SF). This study presents qualitative results from a mixed-methods descriptive study (N = 201). Seven themes emerged from the qualitative data that detailed the caregiving experience of the individuals with high grief: (a) yearning for the past, (b) regret and guilt, (c) isolation, (d) restricted freedom, (e) life stressors, (f) systemic issues, and (g) coping strategies. The first 2 themes reflect grief reactions, whereas isolation, restricted freedom, life stressors, and systemic issues possessed elements of both grief and caregiver burden and stress. Coping strategies used by this group of caregivers included spiritual faith, social supports, and pets. Quantitative analysis confirmed that these themes are unique to individuals with high levels of grief compared with those with moderate/low levels of grief, except for the coping strategies of social support and spiritual faith. Caregivers with high levels of grief may benefit from supportive interventions that are based on reducing feelings of isolation, lack of freedom, and increased guilt and regret, while also addressing feelings of loss. Interventions that facilitate building a supportive network are suggested. Using a screening tool such as the MM-CGI-SF will help in identifying caregivers with high levels of grief who may be in need of additional support. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The prevalence of Prolonged Grief Disorder (PGD) in non-Whites is currently unknown. This study was performed to explore the prevalence of PGD in African Americans (AAs). Multivariable analysis of two studies of recently bereaved individuals found AAs to have significantly higher rates of PGD than Whites (21% [14 of 66] vs. 12% [55 of 471], respectively; p = 0.03). Experiencing a loved one's death as sudden or unexpected was also significantly associated with PGD over and above the effects of race/ethnicity. AAs may be at increased risk for the development of PGD. The development of effective interventions to treat PGD highlights the need to identify high-risk individuals and refer them to therapy and suggests the potential need for such therapies to adopt culturally sensitive approaches to care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article reports empirical research into public books of condolence signed following two key mourning events within British culture: the 1989 Hillsborough soccer stadium disaster and the death of Diana, Princess of Wales, in 1997. The author suggests that not only do condolence books provide valuable historical record of the way contemporary society mourns, but also that they reflect attempts to language loss in ways that can be used to evaluate the extent of society's engagement with death. In so doing, he points to ways in which condolence messages signed following these events oscillate between "conservative structures of meaning" (Marris, 1974) and contemporary "structures of feeling" (Williams, 1971). In turn he suggests that such distinctions - between public and private, modernity and tradition - are destabilized by the postmodern cultural forms that these events appeared to inaugurate. In addition, and in the purported absence of expressivist mourning rituals (Gorer, 1965), the author suggests that condolence books may provide a useful social platform for the social expression of grief. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article offers information on the 8th International Conference on Grief and Bereavement in Contemporary Society to be held on July 15-18, 2008 in Melbourne, Australia and presents a list of resources that provides assistance to children in managing the death of their pets. It states that the event will feature several discussions under the theme "Consequences of Loss: Resilience and Complications in the Grief Experience. The keynote speakers for the event were also mentioned. On the other hand, the article cites the death of the 13-1/2 year-old dog named Daisy and how the family managed the death of the pet. Also, a list of websites were included related to pet loss.

Although bereavement-related emotional distress usually remits on its own over time, approximately 20% of bereaved individuals experience chronic emotional difficulties following the loss (Prigerson & Jacobs, 2001). Although several factors have been shown to be associated with poor outcomes post-loss, few studies have examined the relationship between pre-loss communication and bereavement-related depression, and none have examined its relationship to complicated grief. The present study examined how pre-loss communication between the bereaved and the deceased is related to post-loss outcomes within a sample of 60 members of online bereavement support groups. Results indicated that developing acceptance of an expected loss is strongly associated with bereavement outcomes. This finding persists even after controlling for relationship closeness and time elapsed post-loss. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A longitudinal study was conducted among bereaved parents to examine the relationship between the circumstances surrounding the death of their child and psychological adjustment. Two hundred nineteen couples participated at 6, 13, and 20 months post-loss. Examination was made of two categories of factors: those that were determined by the particular death circumstances (e.g., whether the parent was present at the death) versus those over which parents themselves could have influence (e.g., choice of cremation or burial). Results indicated that some but not all factors were related to adjustment over time. Importantly, the feeling of having said goodbye to the child and presenting the body for viewing at home were associated with lower levels of the parents' grief. Implications for supporting bereaved parents are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous empirical studies of pregnancy loss have predominantly focused on complex grief response and emergent problems associated with future parenting in self-selected samples of bereaved women. This article presents findings from a retrospective secondary data analysis conducted with a racially and ethnically diverse sample of currently parenting women in the United States (N = 10,688) that examined the relationships among pregnancy loss history, current maternal depressive symptoms, and mother-infant interaction with the enrolled child. Study findings underscore a racial-ethnic disparity in pregnancy loss history for African American women, whereas current maternal depressive symptoms remain fairly constant across racial-ethnic groups. Multiple loss history is associated with a slight elevation in overall symptoms of depression, but there is no relationship between pregnancy loss history and current mother-infant interaction in the study sample. An important limitation in this study is that the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Birth Cohort (ECLS-B) data does not allow for inferences specific to the type of loss, gestational age of fetus, time since loss, or whether the loss was spontaneous or induced. However, study findings highlight areas of incongruity between clinical and population-based research that deserve further investigation. Ultimately, the findings from this population-based research contribute to a wider perspective regarding maternal response to reproductive loss that can inform future research and targeted bereavement support. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using a contextual resilience framework, the authors examine the processes whereby bereaved persons change over time. Rather than the concept recovery, the authors propose that the concept adaptation best captures the process of change following bereavement and that the desired outcome of such adaptation is denoted by the term resilience. Adaptation occurs over time and is shaped by environmental and individual level risk and protective factors. By use of a "contextual resilience" framework, the authors emphasize the central role that person-environment transactions play versus the heavy emphasis on intrapersonal processes in some other approaches to resilience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]