Definition
Grief counseling (also referred to as grief therapy or bereavement counseling) is the term used for the counseling or therapy support that is provided for those who are suffering as a consequence of a loss through the death of someone close to them. Grief counseling may also be used to assist with adjustment to other losses that involve a strong element of grief, such as amputation, loss of role, or divorce. Bereavement therapy may be distinguished from bereavement counseling as being provided for those who are having trouble adjusting, rather than being provided preventively.
Grief counseling developed largely from the 1970s to provide support to people following bereavement in the increasingly fragmented societies of the technologically developed world, in which the religious rites, rituals, and support of more traditional communities had been eroded. Services have traditionally been provided through...
References and Further Readings
Currier, J. M., Neimeyer, R. A., & Berman, J. S. (2008). The effectiveness of psychotherapeutic interventions for bereaved persons: A comprehensive quantitative review. Psychological Bulletin, 134(5), 648.
Lendrum, S., & Syme, G. (2004). Gift of tears: A practical approach to loss and bereavement counselling (2nd ed.). Hove: Routledge.
Neimeyer, R. A., & Hogan, N. S. (2001). Quantitative or qualitative? Measurement issues in the study of grief. In M. S. Stroebe, R. O. Hansson, W. Stroebe, & H. Schut (Eds.), Handbook of bereavement research: Causes, consequences and care (pp. 89–118). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
Raphael, B., Minkov, C., & Dobson, M. (2001). Psychotherapeutic and pharmacological intervention for bereaved persons. In M. S. Stroebe, R. O. Hansson, W. Stroebe, & H. Schut (Eds.), Handbook of bereavement research: Causes, consequences and care (pp. 587–612). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
Worden, J. W. (2009). Grief counselling and grief therapy (4th ed.). London: Tavistock.
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Oyebode, J.R. (2016). Grief Counseling. In: Gellman, M., Turner, J. (eds) Encyclopedia of Behavioral Medicine. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-6439-6_862-2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-6439-6_862-2
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