Bereavement

The bulk of the literature on bereavement tends to focus on specific methods in which the bereaved work through the myriad effects of loss. This literature also highlights the fact that the closer the bond between the deceased and the bereaved (mother and daughter being the focus of this study), the more difficult, painful, and drawn-out the "grief work" process may be. More specifically, it appears that the age of the daughter at the time of the maternal loss is an important influence on subsequent coping and reintegration; younger females who lose their mothers are more likely than older females to experience long-lasting psychological and psychosocial ill-effects. Furthermore, the quality of the mother/daughter relationship itself is a significant determinant of how well (or poorly) a daughter will cope with her loss. Moreover, the ability of the dying or terminally ill mother to manage her own grief work effectively can influence the ways in which a female offspring will cope with the trauma. In addition, it would appear that other variables - suddenness of the mother's death, support of father, existence of support networks, and daughter's own psychological coping skills - play an important role in determining how effective the daughter's grief work will be and the duration (as well as the severity) of bereavement.

Francine du Plessix Gray (2000) recently commented on the rapidly expanding body of literature describing "grief work"

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Category: Psychology - B