Costello J, Kendrick K
Nursing, University of Manchester, Manchester, England.
J Adv Nurs. 2000 Dec;32(6):1374-82. doi: 10.1046/j.1365-2648.2000.01625.x.
The aim of this ethnographic study was to explore retrospectively the grief experiences of 12 older people whose partners had recently died in hospital, following a period of terminal illness. The rationale was based upon developing an understanding of the grief experiences of newly bereaved older people. In doing so, it is important to consider that grief is not only shaped by culture and social context but also by the nature of the relationship between the mourner and the deceased. For most of this century, the dominant conceptualization relating to grief and the social experience of bereavement has been based on the psychoanalytical school of thought. This process is said to involve the mourner passing through a number of stages or phases and forms the basis of the 'grief work hypothesis'. Using in-depth ethnographic interviews, the mourner's reactions to and perceptions of the loss were explored. Tape-recorded interview data were analysed using the inductive process of both content analysis and discourse evaluation. The findings from this study shed light on an area of conjugal bereavement that has received little attention in the past and challenges traditional models of grief. The indications are that in the first year of bereavement, the bereaved retain and modify the emotional relationship with their deceased partners, through a range of symbolic behaviours. The discussion raises issues concerning the need to consider the extent to which contemporary conceptualizations of grief explain the reactions of older people whose grief experiences are shaped by their social situation. The study also highlights important issues concerning the need to understand the complexity of grief experiences and bereavement support for older people which has a number of implications for nurses in both hospital and community settings.
这项人种志研究的目的是，对12位伴侣近期在经历了一段绝症期后于医院去世的老年人的悲伤经历进行回顾性探究。其基本原理是基于对新近丧偶老年人悲伤经历的理解。在此过程中，重要的是要考虑到悲伤不仅受文化和社会背景的影响，还受哀悼者与逝者之间关系性质的影响。在本世纪的大部分时间里，与悲伤及丧亲之痛的社会经历相关的主流概念化一直基于精神分析学派的思想。据说这个过程涉及哀悼者经历多个阶段或时期，并构成了“悲伤工作假说”的基础。通过深入的人种志访谈，探究了哀悼者对丧失的反应和认知。使用内容分析和话语评估的归纳过程对录音访谈数据进行了分析。这项研究的结果揭示了过去很少受到关注的婚姻丧亲之痛领域，并对传统的悲伤模式提出了挑战。有迹象表明，在丧亲的第一年，丧亲者通过一系列象征性的行为，保留并改变了与已故伴侣的情感关系。讨论提出了一些问题，即需要考虑当代悲伤概念在多大程度上能够解释其悲伤经历受社会状况影响的老年人的反应。该研究还突出了一些重要问题，即需要理解悲伤经历的复杂性以及为老年人提供丧亲支持，这对医院和社区环境中的护士都有诸多影响。
