Robert L. Wrenn

College management of student death: A survey

Abstract A national survey of Association for Death Education and Counseling members who coded themselves as employed in higher education in the 1989–1990 membership directory was conducted during that school year. Of the 141 members solicited,53 (38 %) of the sample responded with answers to questions about how their school managed student death and what they found to be helpful on a case by case basis. Results indicated that most schools did not have a written policy of operation, there was very little training of personnel in death matters, and the functionaries that were called into play were determined in large part by school size or mission. The main obstacle to carrying out successful efforts in managing death on campus related to the timely relay of facts and information from police and other officials. There were a number of helpful practices listed and gleaned from the cases presented.

Languages of Grief: a model for understanding the expressions of the bereaved

The aim of this work is to provide an overview of the key features of the expressions of grief. Grief is a response to loss or anticipated loss. Although universal, its oral and nonverbal expression varies across cultures and individuals. Loss is produced by an event perceived to be negative to varying degrees by the individuals involved and has the potential to trigger long-term changes in a persons cognitions and relationships. The languages used by the bereaved to express grief differ from the language used by professionals, creating dissonance between the two. Data were obtained from English language Medline and CINAHL databases, from professional and personal experiences, interviews with experts, and exploration of cemetery memorials. Blog websites and social networks provided additional materials for further refinement of the model. Content analysis of the materials and agreement by the authors as to the themes resulted in the development of the model. To bridge the gap between professional language and that used by the bereaved, a Languages of Grief model was developed consisting of four Modes of Expression, four Types of Language, plus three Contingent Factors. The Languages of Grief provides a framework for comprehending the grief of the individual, contributing to clinical understanding, and fruitful exploration by professionals in better understanding the use of languages by the bereaved. Attention to the Modes of Expression, Types of Language, and Contingent Factors provides the professional with a richer understanding of the grieving individual, a step in providing appropriate support to the bereaved. The Languages of Grief provides a framework for application to discrete occurrences with the goal of understanding grief from the perspective of the bereaved.

Literature in psychology viewed from the elementary text

A method of exploring the current status of literature in psychology was conducted by classifying all references cited in a sample of five elementary psychology texts. The categories used were (a) extent of agreement among text authors on references included (b) journals most frequently drawn upon for elementary text data and (c) percentage of references taken from a given decade in recent history. Results indicated that a very small percentage of the total number of references were cited in common by all authors. The journals most often used seemed to create an image of psychology as biological science. Finally, most references used in the elementary texts were taken from the most recent decade of psychological history. The approach used in gathering the data, as well as the data itself, is discussed.

Hospice Care and the Bereavement Process in Two Countries: Experience from the United States and the Netherlands

The authors examine the bereavement process within hospice programs in the United States and in the Netherlands. Topics covered include brief histories of hospice within each country, circumstances that constrain bereavement outcomes research, approaches to hospice bereavement services in each country including bereavement program protocols developed by the National Hospice Organization for programs in the United States, issues of bereavement care and physician-assisted suicide, and an overall comparison of hospice bereavement services in each country.

Book Review: Finding My Way, Healing and Transformation through Loss and Grief, Help Your Marriage Survive the Death of a Child, Living with Grief: Who We Are; How We Care

Finding My Way is a beautifully written book representing John M. Schneider’s comprehensive description and revision of the transformative model of grief that he initially developed in 1984 to provide a framework for understanding the complex phenomena of grief. Schneider has an ability to connect with the reader, capturing the essence of the grieving process in a manner that resonates with one’s own individual story. Schneider’s writing style incorporates the use of rich metaphors which is so lacking in the traditional approach commonly used in texts for health care professionals. Schneider’s model is normative, cyclical, growth oriented and describes grief in the context of a three step discovery process: Discovering What is Lost, What is Left, and What is Possible. The major portion of the book, chapters three through nine, is devoted to an in-depth discussion of the three phases. In phase one, the person discovers what has been lost and finds ways to cope. Since loss cannot be fully absorbed at one time, normal coping during initial phases of grief involves adaptive ways that limit full awareness of the loss. A balance of ‘holding on and letting go’ strategies allows the person to gradually discover the full extent of the loss, but at the same time conserves energy that is necessary to go on. The second phase proceeds to a more active discovery process of what is left and what can be restored. This can only be accomplished once the person discovers what is gone. During this phase, sadness begins to sweeten, hopelessness reduced, and loneliness is less frightening. In this phase Schneider discusses the themes of healing and restoration-of perspective and eventually integrating the loss. Although the loss cannot be changed, the person can change her or himself. In the third phase, discovering what is possible, the person formulates, or reframes the loss. According to Schneider “reformulating loss and self empowerment go hand in hand” (p. 235). The capacity to reformulate loss involves not only finding significance in the loss, but also in being able to experience the fullness of life with an openness to hope, growth, freedom and new choices.