Perceived social support is a psychosocial resource that protects the mental health of parents who have lost an only child (shidu parents), but its benefits likely vary depending on stigma-a challenge that these parents face in social contexts. We used data from 482 shidu parents (M age = 66.63, SD age = 6.88) who reported perceived support (overall and by specific source, family, peer, and others), depressive symptoms, perceived stigma, and demographic characteristics. Linear regressions showed that family support and others support were negatively associated with depressive symptoms, consistent with the finding for overall perceived support, whereas peer support was not in the main-effect analysis. Perceived stigma consistently moderated associations with depressive symptoms across overall and source-specific support: social support was negatively associated with depressive symptoms when stigma was low, but not when stigma was high. These findings refine our understanding of social support and inform stigma-reduction to maximize its psychological benefits for shidu parents.
This paper explores meaning-making in stories about transcendent experiences of continuing bonds with deceased loved ones. In doing so, we assume an ontologically neutral position on the veridicality of the experience and focus on the narration and interpretation of experiencers themselves. We describe and characterize a corpus of personal stories on transcendent experiences with regards to (i) narrative meaning-making and tellability, (ii) the way in which the transcendent experience affects the narrator's relationship to the loss, and (iii) the stories' epistemic framing and consequent epistemic attitudes of the narrator. We found that synchronicity and symbolism play an important role in interpreting transcendent experiences as meaningful. Furthermore, the stories showed a positively valanced transformative trend, with narrators often emphasizing how transcendent experiences provided comfort and a new perspective on their loss. Lastly, narrators often assumed an ambiguous epistemic attitude toward their experiences, sometimes describing how these triggered a change in their attitude toward death and the afterlife.
Older women are disproportionately affected by spousal bereavement, yet little is known about how social, lifestyle, and positive psychological factors correlate with grief-related symptoms and depression following partner loss. We examined these associations among 1946 older women (mean age =84.6 years) in the Women's Health Initiative who experienced spousal or partner loss during COVID-19. Changes in social connection, physical activity, and positive psychological attributes were evaluated in relation to yearning, intrusive thoughts, and depressive symptoms. Multinomial and binary logistic regression estimated adjusted odds ratios; stepwise regression identified parsimonious models. Severe loneliness was associated with approximately threefold higher odds of intense yearning, intrusive thoughts, and depressive symptoms. Conversely, greater optimism, purpose in life, and spiritual well-being correlated with lower symptom burden. More frequent walking was associated with lower depressive symptom odds. These findings highlight potentially modifiable psychosocial and lifestyle factors associated with grief-related and depressive symptoms among bereaved older women.
Death education remains marginal in primary schooling despite children's encounters with dying, death and bereavement. This cross-sectional mixed-methods survey examined death-related teaching among 148 practising primary teachers in Scotland and British Columbia. Although 77.0% reported having addressed death-related topics, this included bereavement support and context-specific discussion. Among 147 timing respondents, 15.0% selected proactive or anticipatory teaching. Reflexive thematic analysis of open-text responses, informed by emotional labor as a sensitizing lens, suggested negotiated situational legitimacy: bereavement, pupil questions and classroom events provided openings for discussion, while teachers described navigating family expectations, professional boundaries and available support. We interpret this pattern as a gap between support for death education and anticipatory capacity to introduce it before an immediate event prompts engagement. The findings highlight teacher preparation, family-school communication and institutional support as priorities for supporting planned death education.
To date, few studies have explored the grief experience of young people after a caregiving period. This research aims to explore and describe the psychological processes in bereaved youth after a caregiving period and identify their needs. Sixteen YCs and YACs under the age of 25 participated in this exploratory qualitative study. Individual semi-structured interviews were conducted and subjected to thematic content analysis. Findings are structured around four main themes: the emotional and behavioral responses during their grieving process, the factors complicating their bereavement, their psychological adjustment following the loss, and the importance of support during this period. The grief experienced by YCs shares similarities with other young people, but it appears to be marked by prolonged challenges (during the caregiving period and after the loss), requiring long-term adjustment processes. This study reveals specific support among bereaved young carers and emphasizes the importance of adapted support beyond the caregiving period through improved recognition and timely access to mental health support.
