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New spaces open up when you lose someone. A disappearance is the beginning of an emergence. This project is about mourning the loss of my nai nai (paternal grandmother in Mandarin) and the spaces that have opened up during the process. Through personal experience and by mapping my psychogeography of the place where I grew up with nai nai, Visättra, this project deals with the meaning of places, memories and objects. I have worked with the translation between immaterial and material things while reflecting on contemporary questions such as: attachment to places and objects, highlighting placeness that is entangled with culture, identity and politics, and situating a subjective experience in a larger narrative. What happens to the places that are attached to the memories of a person after their death? What kind of new places are born out of grief and loss? How are they manifested through different scales—from the personal to the universal and the psychological to the geographical? I have explored my questions intuitively along with theoretical frameworks followed by a process of tracing, collecting, translating and recreating carriers of memories, revealing scenes of a dichotomy between brokenness and wholeness—from then to now and from there to here.

(1) Background: Some infants die shortly after birth, leaving both parents and nurses in grief. In the specific setting where the data were collected, the bereaved parents receive a scrapbook made by the nursing staff in the NICU, and a box made by a local parent support group. Making a scrapbook and a box when an infant dies in the NICU can be regarded as ritualized acts. The aim of this study is to explore the functions of these ritualized acts of making a scrapbook and memory box when an infant dies in the NICU. (2) Methods: Focus group interviews were performed with experienced nurses in the NICU, and with members of a parent support group. Reflexive thematic analysis was used to interpret the data. (3) Three main themes were constructed: “Making memories”, “showing evidence of the infant’s life and of the parenthood”, and “controlling chaos”. (4) Conclusions: Through the ritualized acts of making scrapbooks and boxes, nurses and members of the parent support group collect and create memories and ascribe the infant with personhood, and the parents with the status of parenthood. In addition, the ritualizing functions to construct meaning, repair loss, relieve sorrow, and offer a sense of closure for the makers of these items.

Publisher's version (útgefin grein), Background Morbidity arising from unprepared bereavement is a problem that affects close personal relations of individuals at the end-of-life. The bereavement studies literature demonstrates that a lack of preparedness for a loved one’s death is a risk factor for secondary psychological morbidity among survivors. Short awareness time of death negatively correlates to preparedness for bereavement. The absence of disclosure of end-of-life diagnosis and prognosis to close personal relations (‘death talk’) between patients and loved ones, or health professionals and loved ones, may contribute to short awareness time of death. To increase awareness time of death, we might attempt to increase patient first-personal disclosure of end-of-life diagnosis and prognosis to loved-ones, and/or patient consent to health professional disclosure of the same. Main text Interventions based on motivational interviewing in end-of-life care whose aim is to facilitate death talk, either by the patient directly, or by a health professional with the patient’s consent, may offer a part solution to the problem of unprepared bereavement. This paper evaluates the ethical permissibility of such interventions. We consider two ethical objections to using motivational interviewing in this way: first, that it is inappropriate for practitioners to seek disclosure as an outcome in this setting; second, that aiming at disclosure risks manipulating individuals into death talk. While it need not be impermissible to direct individuals toward disclosure of end-of-life diagnosis/prognosis, the objection from manipulation implies that it is pro tanto ethically preferable to use motivational interviewing in a non-directive mode in death talk conversations. However, insofar as non-directive motivational interviewing requires more advanced skills, and thus may be more difficult to learn and to practise, we advance that it may be ethically permissible, all things considered, to employ directional, or specific outcome-oriented, motivational interviewing. Conclusion Motivational interviewing interventions in end-of-life care whose aim is to facilitate death talk, either by the patient directly, or by a health professional with the patient’s consent may be ethically permissible, all things considered., Kamprad Family Foundation for Entrepreneurship, Research & Charity Grant number 20150034

[Abstract] Healthcare professionals find the care of parents following an involuntary pregnancy loss stressful and challenging. They also feel unprepared to support bereaved parents. The challenging nature of this support may have a personal impact on health professionals and the care provided to parents. The aim of this meta-ethnography is to synthesise nurses’ and midwives’ experiences of caring for parents following an involuntary pregnancy loss. A meta-ethnography of ten studies from five countries was carried out. GRADE CERQual was assessed to show the degree of confidence in the review findings. An overarching metaphor, caring in darkness, accompanied by five major themes provided interpretive explanations about the experiences of nurses and midwives in caring for involuntary pregnancy losses: (1) Forces that turn off the light, (2) strength to go into darkness, (3) avoiding stumbling, (4) groping in darkness, and (5) wounded after dealing with darkness. Nursing staff dealt with organizational difficulties, which encouraged task-focused care and avoidance of encounters and emotional connection with parents. However, nurses and midwives might go beyond in their care when they had competencies, support, and a strong value base, despite the personal cost involved.

In contemporary architectural practice, it seems impossible to establish common consensus regarding the merits or definition of architectural beauty. Moreover, the ancient links between "the just" and "the beautiful" have been severed. This article argues that the dissociation between beauty and justice may well be rooted in the unquestioning way in which we habitually fall back on established aesthetic tropes when considering the notion of architectural beauty. In response, it challenges the value and appropriateness of such aesthetic assertions by recalling Martin Heidegger's formulation of human life as an event of emplaced care, and human contemplation as a form of "inceptual thinking". This article then briefly discusses the relationship between this kind of inceptual beauty and the notion of justice, as put forward by John Rawls. Interwoven with these philosophical positions, the text refers to the historical development of church architecture as interpretive device.

Master's thesis in Social Work There are a lot of cases when people disappear against their will, while other might decide to disappear intentionally, in order to protect themselves from violence. The reason of disappearance could be wars, conflicts or any naturals disasters. The families, friends who stay behind not always have an opportunity to say goodbye to those who went missing. One of the examples is interethnic conflict in the South of Kyrgyzstan, when there were people who went missing unintentionally. The families who left behind do not know any information about their loved ones either what happened to them or whether they are alive or not. This confusion about the fate of the loved ones leads to issues with identity, roles and responsibilities in the families. Moreover, for all the families it could be a very stressful situation which forces the wives to learn to cope with their ambiguity. Unfortunately, there are only few researches have been conducted in the Asian context and majority of the works are done in the western countries. The purpose of this study was to explore the lived experiences of wives of missing people in the “peace-building” apartment buildings. The main objectives of the research was to identify the coping mechanisms of wives with their ambiguous loss and self-perception of wives about their status as “widows” or “wives of missing people”. Moreover, to contribute to the studies about the ambiguous loss. The research was based on 5 semi-structured interviews with wives of missing people due to interethnic conflicts in the South of Kyrgyzstan in 2010, 1 focus group interview the same group and 3 additional interviews with representatives of passport agency, psychologist and clergy. The key informants were added after the focus group discussion, in order to get more information on what the wives of missing people mentioned. The findings were analyzed by using Thematic analysis. The findings show that when the husbands went missing, the wives gained new responsibilities and seen as both “mothers and fathers” and became breadwinners of the families. Moreover, the religion and state contradict each other in recognizing a wife of a missing person. For example, it was found that religion perceives the wives of missing people as the wives who have to wait for 30 years as “waiting wives”, while the state recognizes them only as “widows”. In respect to coping mechanisms, the wives use social support as the coping mechanisms, which was very common. In addition, there were 2 more coping mechanisms that were recognized as avoidance and praying.

Don't fear the griever Because of a lack of words, action and tools, the people around a griever tend to disappear. In Norway, grief is often an individual and lonely experience. Approaching grievers can feel risky and intimidating; the fear of making things worse tends to push people away. We have created an alternative present showing new ways of approaching people in mourning. We have designed a fictitious chain of events, in Norwegian society, that spans from 2011 to today. Through this project, we want to contribute to a broader conversation about how we cope with grief, and explore new ways of using design to discuss what this discipline can offer. Our main ambition for this project is to visualize and reflect on the implications design has on social and cultural relations.

The thesis explores the meaning and function of tears in Roman political culture during the Republic and the Early Empire in various historical settings: mourning, the law court, and in different political contexts where power, authority, and subjection were expressed or exercised. This is carried through by reading representations of weeping in Greek and Latin literary works in different genres, written by different authors. The study demonstrates that while tears and weeping were a common occurrence in Roman politics, the appropriateness and meaning of tears varied by literary context and variables in the historical context (like status, gender, and communicative context). The study also discusses the question of change over and time and argues that the advent of the Emperor impacted weeping and that both an increased appreciation of tears as well as self-control were available as responses for the elite.

Moving images are more and more in the centre of culture, providing individuals with stories by which reality is maintained and by which humans construct ordered micro-universes for themselves. There is a growing field of research evolving around the idea that culture and art could act as a catalyst for experiences of deeper meaning. In this article, a case study is described and analysed. A contemplative short art film was presented to a group of women as a possible asset for processing fundamental existential life issues. The women did not respond in line with expectations and their impressions of the short film were essentially negative, with expressions of impatience, irritation and even hostility towards the film’s appeal. Two problematic aspects of the film Night are outlined: (1) the meaning of the imagery used was too open and (2) as a piece of art, the film was not in tune with participants’ grieving processes.

This book is a contribution to debates concerning the state of death in the contemporary Western world. Taking up the argument that death there has recently undergone a revival, the book problematizes the idea that this revival is caused by general trends in society for example rising individualism. The book describes a link between the revival of death in Iceland and neo-liberal governmentality, in particular the machinery by means of which modern citizens are enjoined to govern themselves. The book draws on extensive ethnographic fieldwork on the changing regimes of dying and grieving in Iceland since the year 2000. The ethnography reflects how the old Icelandic solution of ‘locking death away in a drawer’ is being replaced by an allegedly healthier option of ‘dealing openly’ with death and grief. The changes in the management of death and grief in Iceland have taken place in the context of a neo-liberal governmentality. The rise of neo-liberalism has been accompanied by a rhetoric that emphasises self-reliance, personal responsibility and individual initiative, private enterprise and personal improvement The authors suggest that the changing regimes of death and grief should be placed in this context. The book reflects on linkages between death and grief, the fluctuating fortunes of the ‘nation form’ in Iceland and the different ways in which political power can be legitimised through the changing relations between ‘nation’, ‘state’ and ‘individual’., Financial support for the initial research was provided by Durham University’s Research Studentship, aided by a Monbusho Scholarship from the Japanese Government and research grants from the Research Council of Iceland (#010010001 and #050678031). The research was made possible by financial assistance from the National Research Council of Iceland and the School of Social Sciences of the University of Aberdeen. A contribution from the Visiting Scholar Scheme at the University of Aberdeen greatly facilitated the writing up of our research. Financial support was provided by the University of Iceland Research Fund and assistant research grants from the School of Social Sciences of the University of Iceland. We are grateful for all of this financial support.

Elin Dysvik,1 Gerd Karin Natvig,2 Bodil Furnes31Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Health Studies, University of Stavanger, Stavanger, Norway; 2Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, Department of Public Health and Primary Care, University of Bergen, Norway; 3Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Health Studies, University of Stavanger, Stavanger, NorwayObjective: The aim of this study was to explore grief caused by chronic pain and treatment adherence, and how these experiences are integrated into ongoing life stories.Methods: A 6-year follow-up using a qualitative mixed-methods design based on written narratives and image narratives was performed. Five women suffering from chronic pain comprised the purposive sample. They had completed an 8-week group pain-management program with two follow-ups, and thereafter continued as a self-help group. A narrative approach was used to analyze the written and image narratives guided by three analytic steps.Results: Findings showed that experiences of grief over time were commonly associated with chronic pain. The participants' past experiences reflected their grief at having to abandon jobs and social networks, and revealed loneliness and despair. The present life situation seemed to reflect adaptation, and hope for the future had been established. Overall, forward progression means an ongoing struggle towards a reintegrated body and a meaningful life.Conclusion: Through such narratives, health-care workers can identify treatment adherence related to grief and pain, and learn how people might regain their lives beyond using traditional interviews.Keywords: chronic pain, follow-up, grief, image, narrative, nursing

Grief following a parent’s suicide has been called ‘the silent grief’: due to a prevailing stigma connected to suicide as a mode of death, the parent cannot be talked about. This silenced or distorted communication complicates grieving youths’ meaning reconstruction centred on the question of why the parent committed suicide – a question inevitably linked to queries of who the deceased parent was, and that ultimately triggers thoughts about who oneself has become in the light of this experience. Previous research has emphasized how vulnerable parentally suicidebereaved youths are by categorizing them as ‘at risk group’ of social and psychological problems and even suicide. However, there is scant knowledge about how these young mourners perceive and manage their own grief and need for social support – knowledge that is essential from a professional perspective. The aim of this thesis is to use a narrative research approach to investigate what and how young mourners tell of their experiences in a variety of social contexts: research interviews, a theatre play and two chat contexts on the Internet. Since they actively seek to achieve something through their communication with others, mourning youths are seen as storytellers and social actors, rather than passive victims of circumstance. This thesis shows how these young mourners search for a context outside of their immediate daily networks where they can normalize and liberate themselves and their deceased parent from stigmatizing discourses. The possibility of narrating experiences in a destigmatizing context supports a renegotiation of how to make sense of the suicide – from a voluntary and selfish act, to an involuntary and desperate act caused by adverse life situations or ‘unbearable pain’ and depression. This knowledge is applicable to encounters with parentally suicide-bereaved youths in a professional context, such as social work practice. Sorgen efter en förälders självmord har kallats ”den tysta sorgen”: eftersom självmord alltjämt är en stigmatiserande dödsorsak är det svårt att prata om den döde föräldern. Sådan tystad eller förvrängd kommunikation försvårar unga sörjandes meningsskapande utifrån frågan varför föräldern tog sitt liv – en fråga ofrånkomligen sammankopplad med funderingar om vem den döde föräldern var, vilket ytterst också väcker tankar om vem man själv har blivit i ljuset av denna erfarenhet. Tidigare forskning har betonat självmordsdrabbade barns sårbarhet genom att kategorisera dem som en ”riskgrupp” för sociala och psykologiska problem och till och med självmord. Emellertid är kunskapen knapp om hur dessa sörjande unga själva uppfattar och hanterar sin sorg och sina stödbehov – en angelägen kunskap ur ett professionellt perspektiv. Syftet med denna avhandling är att genom en narrativ forskningsansats undersöka vad och hur unga sörjande berättar om sina erfarenheter i några olika sociala kontexter: i forskningsintervjuer, en teaterföreställning och två olika chattsammanhang på Internet. Eftersom dessa sörjande unga aktivt försöker åstadkomma något genom sin kommunikation med andra förstås de som berättare och sociala aktörer, snarare än passiva offer för omständigheter. Avhandlingen visar hur unga självmordssörjande söker en plats utanför sina vardagliga relationer, där de kan normalisera och frigöra sig själva och den döde föräldern i relation till stigmatiserande diskurser. Möjligheten att berätta om sina erfarenheter i en icke stigmatiserande kontext kan stödja en omförhandling av självmordet – från en frivillig och självisk handling till en ofrivillig och desperat handling orsakad av en svår livssituation och ”outhärdlig smärta” eller depression. Denna kunskap är tillämpbar i mötet med unga självmordssörjande i en professionell kontext, så som det sociala arbetets praktik. In the printed version note 1 on page 15 was incomplete with most of the text missing. In the electronic version note 1 is complete.

Ingår i SIEF the Ritual Working Groups konferenspublikationer