Mary Alice Varga

Grieving Online: Newcomers’ Constructions of Grief in an Online Support Group

Research into peer conversations in online grief support groups remains scarce. The authors used discourse analysis to examine 107 initial posts to one such group to examine how newcomers constructed their initial posts to display their eligibility for membership. The authors identified three discursive features: formulating unusual stories of loss, describing uncontrollable emotional and physical states, and engaging in “troubles telling.” These discursive patterns illustrate how grief is constructed in ways that may simultaneously conform to and resist norms around grief that exist offline. Implications for practitioners include the need to support individuals through validation of their “nonnormal” grief.

Please Know That You Are Not Alone with Your Pain: Responses to Newcomer Posts in an Online Grief Support Forum.

In an effort to better understand how the Internet can provide support to bereaved individuals, this discourse analysis study examined the responses to 107 initial posts in an online grief support group to understand how newcomers’ bids for group membership were taken up by current members. Discursive features included validation and empathy through second stories, constructing grief through descriptions, and accepting bids for membership through advice giving and invitations to return to the group. These features illustrate how grief and being a griever are constructed in an online context and how they deviate from the “normal” grief expectations in the offline world.

Grief Experiences Among Female American and Arab Undergraduate College Students.

The purpose of this study was to compare the incidence of grief among American and Arab female undergraduate students, the effects of their grief, and risk of prolonged grief disorder. A total of 471 female undergraduate students, 308 (65.4%) from the United Arab Emirates and 163 (34.6%) from the United States, completed a survey about their grief experiences. Students experiencing a significant loss also completed the Prolonged Grief Disorder Questionnaire. Findings revealed that overall approximately 38.4% (n = 181) of all 471 students experienced the loss of a significant person in their lives within the past 24 months; a similar percentage was found in each sub group. Students reported various grief effects with American students experiencing more effects related to sleep, relationships, academics, physical well-being, religion/spirituality, and outlook on life than Arab students. Only a small number (10, 5.52%) of students met the criteria for prolonged grief disorder; however, most students were female Arab students. Limitations of the study and recommendations for future research are provided.

A Quantitative Study of Graduate Student Grief Experiences

The purpose of this study was to determine the incidence of grief among graduate students, the effects of their grief, types of support utilized, and risk of prolonged grief disorder. Approximately 26% of graduate students (N = 1,575) experienced the loss of a significant person or pet in their lives within the past 24 months. Graduate students reported various grief effects, primarily emotional effects, and utilized support predominantly from family and friends. Only a small percentage (0.5%) of graduate students met the criteria for prolonged grief disorder; however, each student also reported being diagnosed with other mental health illnesses. Implications of these findings are provided, along with recommendations for future research.

Grief Interactions Among Emerging Adults on College Campuses

An estimated 25–40% of the student population on university campuses is grieving a loss that occurred within the past 24 months. This study illustrates the findings of interviews from 20 students about their grief experiences to more deeply understand the unique ways they experience and interact with grief. Three overarching themes were identified, including private grief interactions with non-bereaved peers, private grief interactions with bereaved peers, and counseling grief interactions. Discussion of specific pragmemes of accommodation associated with each interaction is provided and how these discourses uniquely socially construct grief support for emerging adults on college campuses.

Building Pre-Service Teacher Interest in Computer Science Education through Mentoring Experiences (Abstract Only)

K-12 teachers have an important role to play in introducing children to computer science. However, most teachers lack explicit training in computer science. This project explored questions related to the experiences of pre-service teachers as they mentored K-12 children in computer science in an informal learning environment. Through a grant-funded project at a comprehensive public university in the Southeastern United States, five pre-education major undergraduate students in an introductory education course learned basic computer programming, interacted with a K-12 computer science teacher around strategies for introducing computer science to kids, and mentored children in exploring computer science in an informal setting. Quantitative and qualitative analyses of the data suggest these experiences were effective in increasing student awareness of critical issues related to computer science education, increasing their knowledge and skills related to Scratch, increasing their self-perception as potential mentors in basic computer programming concepts, and increasing their attraction to STEM majors and endorsements.

Characteristics of Graduate Counseling Student Grief Experiences

This study explored the incidence of grief and resulting effects experienced by graduate counseling students. A total of 157 students from three universities completed surveys about their grief experiences. The authors calculated descriptive statistics, as well as Kruskal–Wallis H tests and Spearman’s rank-order correlation coefficient, to identify relationships between variables. Results indicated that approximately 86% (n = 129) of students had experienced loss within their lifetime. Participants reported emotional, cognitive, physical, behavioral, interpersonal, and world assumption grief effects, with statistically significant relationships to both type of loss and reported closeness to the deceased. These findings provide new information on the specific and multidimensional grief effects these students experienced and offer practical insight into how grieving students can be best supported during their counseling training.

Death and Dying, Psychology of

This article is a revision of the previous edition article by A. Kruse, volume 5, pp. 3263–3267,

Helping Adolescents Cope With Loss: A Comprehensive Text

Kenneth J. Doka is a professor of gerontology at the Graduate School of the College of New Rochelle and a Senior Consultant to the Hospice Foundation of America. He edited Children Mourning, Mourning Children published in 1995 by the Hospice Foundation of America and Living With Grief: Children, Adolescents, and Loss published in 2000 by Routledge. Amy S. Tucci is the Vice President of Programs at the Hospice Foundation of America She also co-edited Living with Grief published by the Hospice Foundation of America in 2007 and of End-of-Life Ethics: A Case Study Approach published by the Hospice Foundation of America in 2012. Mary Alice Varga is an Assistant Professor of Educational Research in the Department of Educational Technology and Foundations at the University of West Georgia. She previously worked with the Grief Outreach Initiative at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville. Her research focuses on college student bereavement and grief in the online world. She completed her dissertation titled A Study of Graduate Student Grief and Prolonged Grief Disorder in 2013 at the University of Tennessee.