The identification of coping mechanisms and grief processing strategies in suicide loss survivors

• Applicant: Dr. Laura Hofmann
• Subject Area: Personality Psychology, Clinical and Medical Psychology, Methodology
• Term: since 2023
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 527262345

Worldwide, more than 800,000 people die by suicide every year. Each suicide leaves behind a multitude of relatives for whom the suicide can have far-reaching psychological and psychosocial consequences. Although grief after suicide is similar in many aspects to grief after other types of death, there are grief reactions that occur specifically after loss by suicide. Bereaved individuals often suffer from strong feelings of guilt, experience stigma, and heightened shame. Those bereaved after a suicide themselves show increased suicidality and are considered a high-risk group for mental health disorders such as depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, and prolonged grief. Despite this, there are few specific interventions and support services for this group of bereaved individuals. In addition, there is a reduced willingness to seek help, making suicide loss survivors more difficult for the support system to reach. Due to the experienced stigma and shame that often accompany suicide bereavement, those affected rarely seek therapeutic help. Therefore, it is essential for the support of bereaved suicide loss survivors to explore the bereavement process and the needs of bereavement support in order to develop specific interventions. Therefore, as part of a research stay at the University of Melbourne, two studies with suicide loss survivors will be conducted to investigate and identify mechanisms of grief processing. The focus of these studies will be on (1) narrative approaches of grief processing and (2) strategies used without therapeutic support. To date, these approaches have received little attention in the support of suicide bereaved individuals, although they may help to close the gap in treatment for this bereavement group. Researchers at the University of Melbourne are now conducting the first studies to examine these mechanisms of grief processing. In both studies, a mixed-methods approach consisting of quantitative data collection and qualitative interviews is used to collect and analyze data from N = 25 bereaved individuals per study. Findings from the two studies will be incorporated into the development of specific bereavement interventions for bereaved suicide loss survivors. Based on the findings from Study 1, a toolkit for bereaved individuals will be developed and subsequently translated into German. Study 2 will also be conducted in Germany after the research stay.

• DFG Programme: WBP Fellowship
• International Connection: Australia
• Host: Dr. Karl Andriessen