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DEATH OF A SPOUSE AS A PSYCHOSOCIAL CRISIS

DEATH OF A SPOUSE AS A PSYCHOSOCIAL CRISIS WITHIN

THE CONTEXT OF ERIKSON'S LIFE CYCLE THEORY

This research examines the death of a spouse viewed as a psychosocial crisis for the surviving member of the union. Erikson's (1982, pp. 55-72) life cycle model provides the conceptual basis for this examination.

Behavioral system balance is a manifestation of successful adjustments and adaptations, even though observed behavior may not appear to be consistent with accepted cultural or biologic norms for healthy behavior. Living systems can and do operate at varying levels of effectiveness and efficiency, but, to be able to operate at all, some minimum level of balance, both internally and externally, must be maintained. A behavioral system possess sufficient flexibility to react effectively to usual variations in the forces acting upon it, and it possess sufficient stress tolerance to permit effective adjustment to many extreme variations in these forces. There occur instances, however, when the stress level reaches a point when balance in the behavioral system temporarily or permanently is lost. Such a point for many, perhaps most, persons is the death of a spouse (Gilewski, Farberow, Gallagher, and Thompson, 1991, pp. 67-75). Research indicates that grief associated with the loss of a spouse persists for a minimum of 30 months subsequent to the death (Thompson, Gallagher-Thompson, Futterman, Gilewski, and Farberow, 1991, pp. 434-441).

Erikson's (1982, pp. 55-72) life cycle theory permits events such as the death of a spouse to be viewed within the context of crisis theory. Erikson (1982, pp. 55-72) uses the word crisis to denote crucial turning points in a person's life. Each of the eight stages in Erikson's (1982, pp. 55-72) life cycle theory represents a crisis period of human development. Other events, such as the death of a spouse, represent special crisis points that occur during a crisis period (Butz, 1992, pp. 104...

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DEATH OF A SPOUSE AS A PSYCHOSOCIAL CRISIS. (1969, December 31). In LotsofEssays.com. Retrieved 20:32, March 28, 2024, from https://www.lotsofessays.com/viewpaper/1687032.html