Exploring Themes of Resiliency in Children after the Death of a Parent

Abstract

The purpose of the phenomenological and grounded qualitative study in this article was to explore resilient traits of children, aged 9 to 12, who experienced the death of a parent within the past 36 months. The researcher assisted the children in narrating and writing their stories about parental loss and adaptation by posing questions guided by a review of literature framed in an ecological context. Data were coded and analyzed, uncovering themes of resilience. Implications for school counselors working with students who have parental grief experiences are discussed.

Reflections of Young Adults on the Loss of a Parent in Adolescence

“…Relatives such as grandparents, cousins, aunts, and uncles may provide an outlet for grief that makes it easier for a bereaved child to cope with the loss of a parent (Greeff & Human, 2004;Eppler, 2008). Families who lack a such a supportive extended network are not able to cope as well with the death (Walsh & McGoldrick, 2004).…”

Working with teens through grief and loss: a resource manual

“…As outlined by Wolfelt (2003), some characteristics that may put a youth at risk include insecurity, abandonment, low self-esteem, experiencing multiple losses, and concurrently dealing with family issues such as alcoholism or abuse. Areas that have shown to contribute to poor grief outcomes are ; type of death (cause for blame, sudden death), characteristics of the relationship (parent death), characteristics of survivor (intense clinging, insecure, anxious, low self-esteem, previous unresolved losses, needing to uphold 'macho' selfimage), and social circumstances (detached from traditional support systems, low socioeconomic status) (Eppler, 2008;Clements, DeRanieri, Vigil , & Benasutti, 2004;Goldman, 2004;Parkes, 1985).…”

“…Teachers need to be aware of the grieving process, understand the developmental stages of grieving, and support students in feelings of loss (Eppler, 2008;Wolfelt, 2003). Teachers and schools can be very important resources in the facilitation of youths death education and grief work.…”

“…Bereavement in childhood has been implicated as an underlying cause of depression and suicide attempts later in life, such as during the teen years (Doka, 2000). According to Eppler (2008), Haine, Ayers, Raveis, Siegel, &Karus (1999), andWeller, Weller, Fristad, &Bowes (1991 ), children who have lost a parent are at increased risk for social impairment and /or psychopathology, display lower levels of self-esteem and selfefficacy, and may also experience depressed states and increased levels of anxiety. These consequences of parental death may be present during the immediate post-death period, but can extend into adulthood as well.…”

“…These consequences of parental death may be present during the immediate post-death period, but can extend into adulthood as well. Children mourn according to their current developmental level , and may postpone future grief work until they reach a new developmental stage (Charkow, 1999;Eppler, 2008). This means that a high school teen may be experiencing unexpected levels of grief as he is just now at a new developmental level needs to work through grief experienced during his childhood (Goldman, 2004).…”