Bereavement: A family life cycle perspective

Navigating Grief in Families: The Experience of Death and Loss in Manchester by the Sea

“…Lee appears to be alone socially and physically as a consequence of the deaths in his family, yet death is not a singular event experienced in social isolation. Despite the fact that more emphasis is typically placed on how an individual experiences a death across behavioral, emotional, social, and spiritual domains, a useful and needed approach lies in understanding how a death influences the whole family system and, in turn, how family practices shape the well‐being of the individual member and the family in the aftermath of loss (Murray, ; Walsh & McGoldrick, ). The death of a family member affects the emotional equilibrium of all other family members, with changes in organization, roles, and functions (Bowen, ; Walsh & McGoldrick, ).…”

“…Despite the fact that more emphasis is typically placed on how an individual experiences a death across behavioral, emotional, social, and spiritual domains, a useful and needed approach lies in understanding how a death influences the whole family system and, in turn, how family practices shape the well‐being of the individual member and the family in the aftermath of loss (Murray, ; Walsh & McGoldrick, ). The death of a family member affects the emotional equilibrium of all other family members, with changes in organization, roles, and functions (Bowen, ; Walsh & McGoldrick, ). How the family responds to the death of members over time depends on the availability of resources, individual and linked developmental trajectories, and the interactions between members lodged in the past and projected into the future (Nadeau, ; Shapiro, , ; Walsh & McGoldrick, ).…”

“…The death of a family member affects the emotional equilibrium of all other family members, with changes in organization, roles, and functions (Bowen, ; Walsh & McGoldrick, ). How the family responds to the death of members over time depends on the availability of resources, individual and linked developmental trajectories, and the interactions between members lodged in the past and projected into the future (Nadeau, ; Shapiro, , ; Walsh & McGoldrick, ). By focusing on the family context of death, the grief responses of each family member are acknowledged while also recognizing that coping and development are interdependent (Shapiro, , ).…”

“…In this review, we utilize Walsh and McGoldrick's () work on bereavement from a family life‐cycle perspective, as it provides a lens for understanding how individuals are situated within families and communities over time in a changing sociohistorical context. This perspective underscores the significance and implications of a member death across the family system, focuses on the ways family members function and adapt over time, and identifies risk and resilience factors that influence individual and family well‐being (Walsh, , , ; Walsh & McGoldrick, , ). These authors' work resonates with other scholars who have emphasized how the recognition and type of death, family resources and communication processes, and associated meaning making over time influence grief processes, family adaptation, and related outcomes.…”

“…After viewing it together, we analyzed the film on the basis of our understandings of theory, research, and practice concerning family death and the rippling of grief across a family system over time. We begin our review with a short overview of the film, highlighting how a family life‐cycle perspective (Walsh & McGoldrick, ) provides a useful lens for understanding the bereavement Lee experiences in the context of his family and community ties. We end our review with comments about the film and its authentic (or not) depictions of death and loss within a family system.…”