Constructions of Mexican American family grief after the death of a child: an exploratory study
Title
Constructions of Mexican American family grief after the death of a child: an exploratory study
Creator
Doran G; Downing HN
Identifier
Publisher
Cultural Diversity & Ethnic Minority Psychology
Date
2006
Subject
Child; Humans; Family Relations; Religion; Case-Control Studies; bereavement; Family/psychology; Attitude to Death/ethnology; SSHRC CURA; Dreams; Mexican Americans/psychology
Description
Using a collective case study ethnographic approach, nine individuals comprising three Mexican American families were interviewed about their family bereavement experiences after the death of a child. All families were Catholic, had surviving siblings, and had had three or more years to grieve their loss when interviewed. The deceased children ranged in age from 3 to 14, and all experienced sudden, traumatic, nonsuicide deaths. To provide a broader, contextual picture of their grief experiences, four individuals who supported these family members after the loss were also interviewed. Unique grief experiences were identified, and eight common themes emerged, reflecting the ways in which family members maintained their bond to the deceased: dreams, storytelling, keepsakes, sense of presence, faith-based connections, proximity connections, ongoing rituals, and pictorial remembrances. The cultural implications of family bereavement are highlighted.
2006
Rights
Article information provided for research and reference use only. PedPalASCNET does not hold any rights over the resource listed here. All rights are retained by the journal listed under publisher and/or the creator(s).
Type
Journal Article
Citation List Month
Backlog
URL Address
Citation
Doran G; Downing HN, “Constructions of Mexican American family grief after the death of a child: an exploratory study,” Pediatric Palliative Care Library, accessed February 9, 2025, https://pedpalascnetlibrary.omeka.net/items/show/13634.