Exploring Alternative Perspectives of Death and Bereavement: Risk, Resilience and Recovery
A special issue of Social Sciences (ISSN 2076-0760).
Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 November 2023) | Viewed by 237
Special Issue Editors
Interests: bereaved men following perinatal loss; children and young people's death anxiety during the pandemic; care home staff experience of grief, loss and support suring COVID-19; acceptance and commitment therapy by spouses and partners of patients experiencing palliative care; frailty and grief in the older population; the use of green spaces in recovery from trauma among the older population in the UK
Interests: suicide bereavement; emotions in research; student mental health and wellbeing; social aspects of death by suicide; sensitive research methodology
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Most people will be exposed to the processes of death, and/or experience bereavement, at some juncture in their lives. Some bereavement theorists have long held the assumption that adults exposed to death, loss or traumatic events (e.g., sudden, or violent death) experience prolonged distress and disruption to daily living such that these experiences warrant clinical and professional intervention to facilitate coping (Bonanno 2004). Furthermore, the absence of prolonged distress or depression following a death, termed ‘absent grief’, is considered by some to be a pathological response that results from denial or avoidance of the emotional reality of the loss (Osterweis et al, 1984). Indeed, Bowlby (1980) described a “prolonged absence of conscious grieving” (p.138) as a form of disordered mourning and considered the expression of positive emotions during bereavement as a form of defensive denial. In the West, mental health professionals working in grief and bereavement have been heavily influenced by the dominant perspective of grief work (Stroebe & Stroebe, 2001). This originated in Freud’s (1917/57) ideas, and continue through subsequent theorists who have emphasized the importance of working through negative thoughts and emotions following loss, yet there has been a dearth of empirical evidence to support this view (Bonnano & Field, 2001).
This special issue will work to challenge the present position in the literature which is dominated by powerful assumptions that adults exposed to death and bereavement, who do not exhibit distress, are either rare, mentally unwell or can only be found in exceptionally healthy individuals (Casella & Motta, 1990). It is intended that the papers will challenge conceptualizations which leave no room for alternative experiences which suggest that death and bereavement can be accompanied with positive emotions, humour and that they may emerge to be life affirming moments. Recently, these assumptions have begun to be challenged, with psychologists such as Carr (2020) suggesting a more complex picture emerges following a death and that there is more than one single factor affecting equilibrium, such as the timing of loss in one’s life trajectory, and social and structural development factors. This Special Issue presents an opportunity for academics to continue this discussion by providing a space for the critical reflection of bereavement research to date. Our intention is to bring together studies with different perspectives, including those who are proponents of grief work, as well as clinical accounts alongside non-medicalized approaches. It will thus allow us to expand our knowledge of this important area by encouraging authors to explore the full breadth of experiences and emotions associated with death and bereavement. This includes the alternate risks and pathways to resilience and recovery, which have gained relatively little attention.
Dr. Kerry Jones
Dr. Sharon Mallon
Guest Editors
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Keywords
- death
- bereavement
- grief work
- resilience
- recovery
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