Massey Documents by Type

Permanent URI for this communityhttps://mro.massey.ac.nz/handle/10179/294

Browse

Filters

1998 - 199912000 - 20101

Settings

Subject: search.filters.subject.Sudden death

Search Results

Now showing 1 - 2 of 2
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    The social construction of grief associated with sudden death : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Psychology at Massey University
    (Massey University, 1998) Mist, Kevin E
    This research explores how grief is socially constructed, by analysis of the everyday language people use when talking about grief associated with the sudden or unexpected death of a family member. The study deconstructs grief talk in transcripts of interviews with ten participants recently bereaved. The texts were read and discourses producing grief and subjectivity are illustrated. With grief being constituted through language, this was analysed by use of Potter and Wetherell (1992) model of discourse analysis. The study tends to support the notion that there are idiosyncratic aspects to grief which are constructed and constituted in multiple discourses. Grief, is constructed as inner complex emotions that are influenced by social and cultural factors which bring understanding and meaning to the loss. Grief is something that people 'do' rather than something that is 'done' to them, and therefore, is personal management as people deal and cope with a mixture of other emotions and thoughts which are embodied within the individual. These emotions and thoughts to some extent are able to be controlled. Grief, although an inner complex emotional response to death, is dealt with and managed in social relatedness. However, there are aspects of grief that could not be constructed linguistically, suggesting that grief is not entirely socially or culturally constituted. Thus, there may be aspects to grief which are never resolved, as there are no words to give meaning to that experience. Grief, has many determinants which affect the outcome of bereavement.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Sudden death : the impact of the immediate aftermath on police officers, victim support workers, and bereaved survivors : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology at Massey University, Wellington, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2010) Hargrave, Petrina Alice-Louise
    The immediate aftermath of a sudden death is known to be distressing for bereaved survivors and the first responders who assist them. However, its impact on posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and complicated grief (CG) in survivors and secondary traumatic stress (STS) in first responders is largely unknown. This study investigated factors contributing to, and resulting from, peri-event distress on suddenly bereaved family members and friends of the deceased (n = 125) and first responders (police officers, n = 165 and Victim Support volunteer workers, n = 148). Perceived lack of first responder support and violent death independently predicted peritraumatic distress in the bereaved sample. In turn, peritraumatic distress was the biggest predictor of both PTSD and CG symptoms. Among first responders, violent death, distress at survivor reactions, and identification with the survivor predicted peritraumatic distress. Distress at survivor reactions predicted less helpful survivor support and, equal with peritraumatic distress, was the strongest STS predictor. Findings suggest that first responders' ability to support survivors and their chances of developing STS symptoms are mostly influenced by how distressing they find survivors' immediate grief and trauma reactions. The degree to which they support survivors directly affects survivors' peritraumatic distress, which affects PTSD and CG symptoms more than other pre, peri, and post-event variables in this study. Using an information processing model, the findings further the theoretical understanding of how sudden bereavement leads to PTSD, CG, and STS. It is argued that peritraumatic distress not only disrupts the processing of trauma information, resulting in PTSD, but also of grief information, leading to CG, and secondary trauma information, resulting in STS. Practical and clinical recommendations are made that may help first responders minimise psychological distress for both survivors and themselves following a sudden death, and help therapists identify survivors at risk of PTSD and CG.