Grief and emotion: A social–functional perspective.

Abstract

There is little doubt that for most people the death of a loved one is an intensely painful experience. However, there are considerable individual differences in duration and severity of grief (Bonanno & Kaltman, 1999;Wortman & Silver, 1989). Traditionally, bereavement theorists have assumed that recovery from loss is predicated on the concerted review and expression of the negative emotions brought about by grieving. This process, considered part of the "work" of mourning, is thought to foster acceptance of the finality of the loss and aid in the necessary severing of attachment to the lost relationship. More recently, consideration of the social and functional aspects of emotion during bereavement has suggested an alternative view that recovery is most likely to occur when negative grief-related emotions are regulated or minimized and when positive emotions are instigated or enhanced . In this chapter, I will first consider the distinction between the constructs of grief and emotion. I will next outline the traditional grief work view of emotion during bereavement and the competing position based on a socialfunctional view of emotion. Finally, I will review recent empirical evidence pertaining to both the dissociation and facial expression of emotion during 493

Problematic Emotions and Maternal Grief

“…Although the value of emotional disclosure in the amelioration of grief is arguable (Archer, 1999), particularly with regard to the value of expressing negative emotions (Bonanno, 2001), one necessary but not sufficient condition for effective counseling should be the correct identification of each troublesome emotion, not withstanding that shame and envy, in particular, may be difficult to identify in everyday discourse and "analyze" in psychotherapy (Bourne, 1968;Farber, 1976a;Foster, 1972;Lewis, 1971;Retzinger, 1995).…”

“…If Bonanno (2001) is correct and "recovery [from bereavement] is most likely to occur when negative griefrelated emotions are regulated or minimized" (p. 493), then dysregulated personality traits based on one or more problematic emotions should have important relationships with maternal grief. In support of this claim, previous research has shown that personality guilt-and shame-proneness explain a substantial proportion of the variance in maternal grief following perinatal bereavement (Barr, 2004).…”

The Impact of Peer Death on Adolescent Girls: An Efficacy Study of the Adolescent Grief and Loss Group

“…(See Table 7) This phase paralleled the group development stages of differentiation and separation (Garland et al, 1973), as well as "performing and adjourning" (Tuckman, 1965). Protective factors were identified and maximized, such as gaining the ability to regulate and minimize negative grief-related emotions and behaviors, and to instigate and enhance positive emotions (Bonanno, 2001). There was a continuation of group cohesion as the girls further explored issues of intimacy and trust by sharing their work around the use of ritual as it related to their experience of the death of a peer (Doka, 2002;.…”

Predictors in Complicated Grief: Supporting Families in Palliative Care Dealing with Grief

“…Finally, experimenting and expressing emotional reactions of anger, bitterness or intense guilt predicts long-term complications in the adequate resolution of bereavement except in those mourners who have maintained very contentious relationships with the deceased (Bonanno, 2001b).…”

“…The use of drugs for the treatment of complicated grief should be approached carefully for two main reasons: first, because empirical research is inconclusive about the effects of drugs on the intensity of grief; and second, because it could create counterproductive addictions (Barreto & Soler, 2007;Raphael et al, 2001/2001b, Worden, 1991/1997Lacasta & Sastre, 2000).…”