Emotion regulation in bereavement: searching for and finding emotional support in social network sites

Abstract

In an age of rising impact of online communication in social network sites (SNS), emotional interaction is neither limited nor restricted by time or space. Bereavement extends to the anonymity of cyberspace. What role does virtual interaction play in SNS in dealing with the basic human emotion of grief caused by the loss of a beloved person? The analysis laid out in this article provides answers in light of an interdisciplinary perspective on online bereavement. Relevant lines of research are scrutinized. After laying out the theoretical spectrum for the study, hypotheses based on a prior in-depth qualitative content analysis of 179 postings in three different German online bereavement platforms are proposed and scrutinized in a quantitative content analysis (2127 postings from 318 users). Emotion regulation patterns in SNS and similarities as well as differences in online bereavement of children, adolescents and adults are revealed. Large-scale quantitative findings into central motives, patterns, and restorative effects of online shared bereavement in regulating distress, fostering personal empowerment, and engendering meaning are presented. The article closes with implications for further analysis in memorialization practices.

From Mediatized Emotion to Digital Affect Cultures: New Technologies and Global Flows of Emotion

“…Rather than focusing on individual cases or the emotional repertoire of a single individual, we have opted to look at the emotional landscape of the digital terrain in the form of communities of practice. Altogether, the findings show that social media foster personal empowerment and a shift in attentional deployment (Döveling, 2015a(Döveling, , 2017, in and through digital affect culture. We note that crises especially challenge the analytical integration of the different subareas of culture into the analysis, yet at the same time offer potential insight into changes in globalized emotion in the changing digital affect cultures.…”

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“…Similarly, an examination of the role of blogs in crisis communication during hurricane Katrina argues that social media can serve as a space for emotional and therapeutic support, as it allows users to discuss and share their emotions online with other individuals (Macias et al 2009). Overall, the social media environment enables people who have lived through similar experiences of a traumatising or disruptive nature to share their emotions online, thus significantly facilitating the coping process (Döveling 2015(Döveling , 2017. Further, storytelling in the interconnected online environment facilitates a process of cathartic sharing, which allows individuals to work through the experience of trauma or crisis and opens up new opportunities for community-building (Arthur 2009).…”

“…Her contribution to the affected communities was through supportive and positive messages. As Döveling (2015) observes, emotional support communicated in digital space "may provide an alternative to traditional support channels [for individuals] confronting similar challenges" (106). In reply to User M.B., Hiroshi explains how emotional support from 18「遅くなりましたが、 少しでも多くの方と共有したくて、 今日ブログで紹介させていただきました。 ありがとうございます。」…”

A Sense of Communal Belonging in Digital Space: The Case of the 3.11 Disaster

“…Her contribution to the affected communities was through supportive and positive messages. As Döveling (2015) observes, emotional support communicated in digital space "may provide an alternative to traditional support channels [for individuals] confronting similar challenges" (106). In reply to User M.B., Hiroshi explains how emotional support from 18「遅くなりましたが、 少しでも多くの方と共有したくて、 今日ブログで紹介させていただきました。 ありがとうございます。」 other users helped him to feel less lonely immediately after the earthquake, as he became aware that others were going through similar emotional struggles.…”