Anticipatory Grief, Proactive Coping, Social Support, and Growth: Exploring Positive Experiences of Preparing for Loss

2018 ◽  
Vol 81 (1) ◽  
pp. 107-129 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kylie B. Rogalla
Keyword(s):  
Social Support ◽  
Posttraumatic Growth ◽  
Mental Health Professionals ◽  
Personal Growth ◽  
Terminal Illness ◽  
Significant Degree ◽  
Proactive Coping ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Anticipatory Grief ◽  
Loved One

All mental health professionals will inevitably serve clients who face the expected death of a loved one. Prominent theories on the grieving process tend to begin after a death or other loss has occurred. Many individuals experience anticipatory grief prior to the physical death. Participants in this study consisted of 120 adults who were anticipating the death of a loved one due to terminal illness. The purpose of this investigation was to assess the relationship between the positive disposition of proactive coping and two forms of growth. Both personal and posttraumatic growth were present to a significant degree, and proactive coping illustrated unique predictive power in personal growth. Social support was a significant mediator of proactive coping and growth and was determined to be an outcome of the assertive nature of this disposition. Implications for helping professionals who serve anticipatory grievers as well as directions for future research are discussed.

Impact of medical assistance in dying (MAiD) on family caregivers

2019 ◽  
pp. bmjspcare-2018-001686
Author(s):  
Rachel Goldberg ◽  
Rinat Nissim ◽  
Ekaterina An ◽  
Sarah Hales
Keyword(s):  
Family Caregivers ◽  
Terminal Illness ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Moral Dilemmas ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Anticipatory Grief ◽  
Medical Assistance ◽  
Loved One ◽  
Medical Assistance In Dying ◽  
The Impact

Medical assistance in dying (MAiD) is a globally polarising topic which often sparks debate surrounding the ethical and moral dilemmas that arise with a life-ending intervention. To gain a better understanding of this intervention, it is important to explore the experience of those most intimately affected by MAiD. Family caregivers of those with a terminal illness are the backbone of the healthcare and support team, often providing a substantial amount of informal care while at the same time coping with their own distress and anticipatory grief. However, we know the least about how MAiD impacts the psychosocial well-being of these same individuals. The aim of this article is to explore the experience of MAiD from the family caregiver perspective, namely their beliefs and opinions about the intervention, how the process of MAiD impacts them, how the intervention shapes their view of their loved one’s quality of death, and the psychosocial outcomes after the passing of their loved one. Beyond the literature, challenges within both the clinical and research realms will be discussed and future directions will be offered. While MAiD is currently legal in only a small number of countries, a better understanding of the impact of MAiD will help inform policy and legislation as they are developed in other jurisdictions. Further, this article aims to inform future research and clinical interventions in order to better understand and support those seeking MAiD and their families.

Adolescent Experience With Parental Cancer and Involvement With Medical Professionals: A Heuristic Phenomenological Inquiry

2021 ◽  
pp. 074355842098544
Author(s):  
Vaida Kazlauskaite ◽  
Stephen T. Fife
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health Professionals ◽  
Health Care Professionals ◽  
Terminal Illness ◽  
Hospital Setting ◽  
Heuristic Inquiry ◽  
Medical Professionals ◽  
Medical Setting ◽  
Parental Cancer ◽  
Phenomenological Inquiry ◽  
Loved One

Experiencing the death of a loved one can be a difficult occurrence. Adolescents, in particular, experience death in a unique way. Yet there is relatively little research on adolescents’ experience with parental death and their involvement in the medical setting during a parent’s terminal illness. This qualitative study utilized heuristic inquiry, a type of phenomenological research, to investigate adolescents’ involvement in the hospital setting during parental terminal illness. Qualitative analysis of participants’ experiences resulted in two primary categories associated with adolescents’ involvement with medical professionals during parental illness: factors influencing hospital involvement and experience with health care professionals. The findings have implications for medical and mental health professionals who work with adolescent family members of terminally ill patients.

Dying concerns in young parents with advanced cancer (PWAC): A scoping review

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-10
Author(s):  
Cinzia Caparso ◽  
Joel Appel ◽  
Ramona Benkert
Keyword(s):  
Advanced Cancer ◽  
Terminal Illness ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Loved One ◽  
Nuclear Families ◽  
Young Parents ◽  
Diverse Backgrounds ◽  
Pediatric Populations

Abstract Background Advanced cancer in young parents (PWAC) can increase dying concerns, the fluctuating thoughts, or feelings, conscious, or unconscious, about an approaching death by a person facing a terminal illness or a family member coping with the impending death of a loved one. However, limited research has been conducted to identify dying concerns in an ill parent as the research has focused on older adults. Objective Our goal was to identify dying concerns that PWAC are expressing and to understand how these concerns affect measurable outcomes. Method CINHAL, MEDLINE, PsychARTICLES, PsycINFO, Social Work Abstracts, Health Source: Nursing/Academic Edition, and Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection were searched. Articles included were samples of PWAC, peer-reviewed, and published within the last 10 years. Elderly or pediatric populations, PWAC with adult children, and early-stage cancer were excluded. The initial search resulted in 1,526 articles, 18 were identified as potentially relevant. Fourteen articles were identified and reviewed. Results PWAC expressed concerns for their children (n = 11), concerns for their co-parent (n = 4), and personal concerns (n = 11). Additionally, PWAC have decreased quality of life, have significant emotional and psychological distress, and have increased family dysfunction in relation to their concerns. Samples limit the generalizability of the findings. Majority of the articles consisted of White, upper, middle-class (n = 8) women (n = 7) diagnosed with breast cancer (n = 11) within nuclear families (n = 11). Significance of results Dying concerns are described in the literature from a fairly narrow sample of PWAC. Future research should focus on recruiting participants from diverse backgrounds, genders, diagnosis types, and non-nuclear families. Identifying concerns for the co-parent would also add to the understanding of dying concerns.

Challenged and changed: Quiet ego and posttraumatic growth in mothers raising children with autism spectrum disorder

Autism ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 607-618 ◽  
Author(s):  
Heidi A Wayment ◽  
Rosemary Al-Kire ◽  
Kristina Brookshire
Keyword(s):  
Social Support ◽  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Posttraumatic Growth ◽  
Personal Growth ◽  
Social Issues ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Hierarchical Regression ◽  
Network Member ◽  
Quiet Ego

Posttraumatic growth theory posits that when life circumstances are perceived as stressful, secondary appraisal processes can be recruited in ways to facilitate both coping efforts and personal growth. Using a mixed-methods approach, we found mothers’ most challenging experiences involved child behavior (e.g. aggression, communication, and social issues) and psychosocial impacts (e.g. lack of social support, perceived judgment of others, perceived loss, and personal distress). Descriptions of most rewarding experiences reflect posttraumatic growth frameworks including constructive perceptions about themselves, life, and their relationships as well as evidence for what Maercker and Zoellner call illusory types of posttraumatic growth. Quantitative data were subjected to a hierarchical regression analysis for self-reported posttraumatic growth and included mothers’ demographics, child functioning, and psychosocial measures. As predicted, posttraumatic growth was positively associated with social support from mothers’ most important network member and quiet ego characteristics, a type of eudaimonic motivation. Contrary to expectation, neither autism spectrum disorder–related rumination nor time since diagnosis (or their interaction) was associated with posttraumatic growth. Discussion focuses on the practical implications of our findings that posttraumatic growth-related coping includes both constructive and illusory forms and the importance of social support and eudaimonic motivation in facilitating positive forms of secondary coping.

The Experience of Stress and Personal Growth Among Grandparents of Children With and Without Intellectual Disability

2014 ◽  
Vol 52 (1) ◽  
pp. 32-48 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liora Findler
Keyword(s):  
Social Support ◽  
Intellectual Disability ◽  
Posttraumatic Growth ◽  
Personal Growth ◽  
Negative Emotions ◽  
External Resources ◽  
Experience Of Stress ◽  
Self Differentiation ◽  
The Cost ◽  
Children With Intellectual Disability

Abstract The aim of this research was to examine the contribution of internal and external resources to stress and personal growth among grandparents of children with and without an intellectual disability. Ninety-four grandparents of children with intellectual disability and 105 grandparents of children without intellectual disability completed the following scales: Multidimensional Experience of Grandparenthood; Multidimensional Scale for Perceived Social Support, Level of Differentiation of Self Scale, Family Adaptability and Cohesion Evaluation Scale, Perceived Stress Scale, and Posttraumatic Growth Inventory. Results indicate that group differences are reflected in higher negative emotions among grandparents of children without intellectual disability. In addition, both stress and growth are related to better health, lower level of education, family cohesiveness, and negative emotions. However, whereas stress is associated with the internal resource of self-differentiation, the external resource of social support, and the cost of grandparenthood, growth is associated with gender and the symbolic and behavioral aspects of the grandparenting role. This study aimed to correct the nearly exclusive focus in the literature on negativity, stress, and the burden of grandparenting children with intellectual disability, as well as to test the pervasive assumption that the absence of disability results in an almost entirely positive grandparenting experience with nearly no negative affect.

The impact of forensic work on home life: the role of emotional labour, segmentation/integration and social support

2016 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 52-63 ◽  
Author(s):  
Helen Johnson ◽  
Rachel Worthington ◽  
Neil Gredecki ◽  
Fiona Rachel Wilks-Riley
Keyword(s):  
Social Support ◽  
Mental Health Professionals ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Emotional Labour ◽  
Fundamental Factor ◽  
Integrate Work ◽  
Forensic Psychiatric ◽  
The Impact

Purpose – Adopting a person-environment (P-E) fit approach, the purpose of this paper is to examine the role of emotional labour, segmentation/integration and social support in the development of work-home conflict. Design/methodology/approach – Mental health professionals (n=118) completed the work-home conflict and home-work conflict scales (Netemeyer et al., 1996), the segmentation preferences and supplies scales (Kreiner, 2006) and the Mann Emotion Requirements Inventory (Mann, 1999). A social support checklist was also developed to assess the perceived value of work and non-work sources of support. Findings – Contrary to expectation, emotional labour was associated with lower levels of work-home conflict. There was no evidence found for the relevance of a P-E fit approach, rather the results indicated that the perception that the organisation supports the separation of work and home is sufficient in ameliorating work-home conflict. In addition, work-based support was found to reduce work-home conflict. Research limitations/implications – The importance of support within the work environment as a way of reducing work-home conflict has been highlighted. That is, providing a safe environment to discuss anxieties and concerns is a fundamental factor when developing organisational support structure. The importance of providing professionals with choice regarding their preference to segment or integrate work and home has also been highlighted. Based on the contradictory findings with regards to emotional labour and work-home conflict, future research should aim to further examine this relationship within a forensic psychiatric setting. Originality/value – This is the first research paper to explore the role of emotional labour, segmentation/integration and social support in the development of work-home conflict.

Trauma-Informed Care and Posttraumatic Growth Among Bereaved Youth: A Pilot Study

2018 ◽  
Vol 82 (2) ◽  
pp. 196-213 ◽  
Author(s):  
Irene S. McClatchey
Keyword(s):  
Posttraumatic Growth ◽  
Stress Disorder ◽  
Significant Degree ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Research And Practice ◽  
Trauma Informed Care ◽  
Bereaved Children ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Trauma Informed ◽  
The Impact

Although a fair amount has been written about posttraumatic stress disorder among bereaved children and adolescents, less has been written about posttraumatic growth (PTG) and its predictors among this population. This study examines predictors of PTG and the impact of trauma-informed care on PTG among bereaved youth. A preexperimental, pretest–posttest design was applied to measure PTG among bereaved children ( N = 32) before and after attending a healing camp that provides trauma-informed care. A regression model was applied to examine predictors of PTG. Results showed that children participating in the camp increased their PTG scores to a statistically significant degree. Circumstance of death (sudden or expected) was a predictor in this study. The results are discussed in relation to limitations, implications for future research, and practice.

Theoretical and philosophical assumptions behind the concept of anticipatory grief

2020 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 56-63
Author(s):  
Emilie Allard ◽  
Christine Genest ◽  
Alain Legault
Keyword(s):  
Future Research ◽  
Post Mortem ◽  
Anticipatory Grief ◽  
Critical Perspective ◽  
Loved One ◽  
Philosophical Foundations ◽  
The Third ◽  
The Social ◽  
Impending Death ◽  
The Individual

Anticipatory grief is a concept commonly used by researchers and clinicians when talking about the experience before the death of a loved one. This article offers a critical perspective on the disciplinary, theoretical and philosophical foundations of three distinct and frequently used conceptualisations of anticipatory grief: Lindemann's, Rando's and one derived from sociology. Lindemann's perspective conceived anticipatory grief as an inevitable component of the grieving experience in the situation of impending death. Rando's perspective views anticipatory grief as a multidimensional experience that facilitates post-mortem mourning. The third perspective, offered by sociologists, defines anticipatory grief as an experience highly influenced by the social context of the individual. This review explains how these different perspectives influence research and concludes with a reflection for potential future research.

scholarly journals Social Dimensions of Personal Growth following Widowhood: A Three-Wave Study

Gerontology ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 64 (4) ◽  
pp. 344-360 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claudia Recksiedler ◽  
Katharina Loter ◽  
Hannah S. Klaas ◽  
Betina Hollstein ◽  
Pasqualina Perrig-Chiello
Keyword(s):  
Social Support ◽  
Life Events ◽  
Personal Growth ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Early Years ◽  
Social Embeddedness ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Social Support Seeking ◽  
Support Seeking ◽  
Time Varying Covariates

Background: Losing one’s spouse is one of the most stressful life events in old age, yet research on positive consequences of overcoming critical life events describes experiences of personal growth for survivors. Objective: Because prior studies conceptualized personal growth as a stable accomplishment of an individual, our study challenges this assumption by examining trajectories of personal growth and its links to two aspects of social support. We assume that personal growth is boosted by heightened levels of loss-related social support seeking during early years of widowhood. However, toward the later stages in the bereavement process, we expect personal growth to be fostered by perceived social embeddedness. Data and Method: Data stem from a survey on relationships in later life conducted in 2012, 2014, and 2016 in Switzerland. The final analytical sample consisted of 508 individuals aged 50+ years, who were on average 73 years old and widowed for about 3 years at baseline. Longitudinal explorative factor analyses yielded a 3-factorial solution for personal growth. Random-effects group-specific growth curves were used to examine the trajectories of personal growth and its subdimensions, by different levels of loss-related social support seeking and embeddedness in a supportive network, over the first 8 years of widowhood. Our analyses included time-invariant and time-varying covariates. Results: On average, our findings point to a stable trajectory of personal growth after having become widowed in later life. Group-specific analyses, however, showed different courses in the trajectories for specific subdimensions of personal growth – particularly for spiritual change and appreciation of life. Average marginal effects also yielded group differences by loss-related support seeking in the level of personal growth over time, which highlight the importance of social support seeking, rather than social embeddedness, at all stages of the bereavement process. Conclusion: Findings underline the importance of a longitudinal and linked-lives perspective on personal growth and point to different pathways regarding its various subdimensions. Future research should further examine the validity of personal growth scales for other populations and consider the possibility to experience personal growth already during the anticipation of a traumatic event (e.g., in the case of long-term caretaking).

Toward an Experiential Theory of Bereavement

1996 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
pp. 43-65 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nancy Hogan ◽  
Janice M. Morse ◽  
Maritza Cerdas Tasón
Keyword(s):  
Grounded Theory ◽  
Cause Of Death ◽  
Personal Growth ◽  
Telephone Interview ◽  
Anticipatory Grief ◽  
Loved One ◽  
Grieving Process ◽  
Vital Component ◽  
Relationship Of ◽  
The Relationship

The Experiential Theory of Bereavement was derived from open-ended, telephone interview data provided by thirty-four adults who had experienced the death of a loved one. Strengths of this grounded theory study are that it was developed with nonclinical persons, it encompasses the illness and dying course, taking into account the full context of illness survivors grief, and it encompasses personal growth as a vital component of the grieving process. Regardless of the cause of death, the timeliness of the person's death, or the relationship of the survivor to the deceased, the process of bereavement follows a consistent overall pattern. Illness survivors were not found to have an ameliorated or foreshortened bereavement process as predicted by the anticipatory grief hypothesis.

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