The Public Face of Grief: Parental Bereavement and Social Media

Authors

  • Dr. Nancy J. Moules University of Calgary https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6507-3153
  • Dr. Catherine M. Laing University of Calgary
  • Dr. Theodore George Texas A&M University
  • Dr. Robert A. Neimeyer Portland Institute for Loss and Transition

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.55016/ojs/jah.v2024Y2024.79957

Abstract

The expression of grief in social media is a complex and multi-layered issue that is ever present in our lives, especially with the increase in social media engagement. In this study, we interviewed 10 bereaved parents around their experiences of social media as vehicle to express their grief following the death of a child. We also interviewed 10 people who posted on sites offering bereavement support and examined multiple social media sites dedicated to grief and loss of a child. Guided by Gadamerian philosophical hermeneutics, we developed several interpretations of this complex and complicated relationship of grief and social media. In this paper, we discuss some of our findings around interpretations of relevant emotion, honoring the deceased, and seeking orientation in a changed world. Advice from bereaved parents is offered to others with similar losses and to those posting on bereavement sites. In the end, we are faced with the interpretation that this relationship of social media and grief is many things, but it is never “neutral.” 

Keywords: Grief, social media, hermeneutics, Gadamer

Author Biographies

Dr. Nancy J. Moules, University of Calgary

Nancy Moules, RN, PhD is a Professor and Associate Dean, Research in the Faculty of Nursing at the University of Calgary. She is founding editor of the Journal of Applied Hermeneutics and cofounder and current Chair of the Canadian Hermeneutic Institute www.chiannual.com. She is an author of over 130 articles on hermeneutics, pediatric oncology, family systems, and grief and co-author of Conducting Hermeneutic Research: From Philosophy to Practicce. 

Dr. Catherine M. Laing, University of Calgary

Catherine M. Laing RN, PhD is an associate professor and interim dean in the Faculty of Nursing at the University of Calgary. Dr. Laing has an extensive background in clinical, educational, and administrative areas in healthcare, and has focused her research program in the areas of pediatric oncology, social return on investment, and innovative healthcare delivery approaches. She is active at the local, national, and international levels of pediatric oncology and nursing administration.  

Dr. Theodore George, Texas A&M University

Dr. Theodore George is Professor of Philosophy and Presidential Impact Fellow at Texas A&M University, and he holds an appointment as adjunct Professor on the Faculty of Nursing at the University of Calgary. His research and teaching expertise is in European philosophy since Kant, especially hermeneutics, and hermeneutical approaches in ethics and the philosophy of art. His publications in hermeneutics include The Responsibility to Understand: Hermeneutical Contours of Ethical Life (Edinburgh University Press; co-ed. with Gert-Jan van der Heiden, The Gadamerian Mind in the Routledge Philosophical Minds series (Routledge, 2021); and he is author of The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy entry, “Hermeneutics” (2020). Dr. George serves as Co-chair of the Canadian Hermeneutics Institute and is category editor, PhilPapers, “Hermeneutics,” / leaf editor “Hans-Georg Gadamer.”

 

Dr. Robert A. Neimeyer, Portland Institute for Loss and Transition

Robert A. Neimeyer, PhD, is Professor Emeritus of the Department of Psychology, University of Memphis, maintains an active consulting practice, and directs the Portland Institute for Loss and Transition, which provides global online training in grief therapy.  Neimeyer has published 35 books, including Living Beyond Loss:  Questions and Answers about Grief and Bereavement and New Techniques of Grief Therapy, and serves as Editor of Death Studies. The author of over 600 articles and chapters and a popular workshop presenter, he is currently working to advance a more adequate theory of grieving as a meaning-making process.  In recognition of his contributions, he has been made a Fellow of the American Psychological Association and given Lifetime Achievement Awards by both the Association for Death Education and Counseling and the International Network on Personal Meaning.

 

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Published

2024-09-05

Issue

Vol. 2024 (2024): 2024

Section

Articles

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