Browsing by Subject "Grief"
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Item Early Canvas(University Of Virginia, 2003-12-12) Pekarske, NicoleItem Exploring the Grief and Bereavement of African American Adult Women Washingtonians Who Experienced the Loss of Their Mothers to Death During Adolescence.(2024-03-20) Essence M. Jones; Tamelyn Tucker-Worgs, Ph.D., Chair; Atiya R. Smith, Ph.D., Committee Member; Beverly H. Stanford, Ph.D., Committee Member; Hood College Education; Organizational LeadershipExploring the Grief and Bereavement of African American Adult Women Washingtonians Who Experienced the Loss of Their Mothers to Death During Adolescence. Essence M. Jones Committee Chair: Tamelyn Tucker-Worgs, Ph.D. ABSTRACT Because African Americans suffer disproportionately high mortality rates, Black women are more likely to lose their mothers to death during adolescence relative to the general population and other racial/ethnic groups. This may lead to significant and lifelong detriments. Informed by critical race theory and intersectionality, the purpose of this qualitative phenomenological (Moustakas, 1994) study was to explore the lived experiences (Giorgi & Giorgi, 2003) of adult African American women in the Washington, DC area (including Washington, DC; Maryland; and Virginia, also called the DMV), who lost their mothers to death during adolescence. Participants from the DMV who had been impacted by the “War on Drugs” era, the HIV/AIDS epidemic, and the COVID-19 pandemic were sampled purposively using a criterion process. Data were collected using qualitative semi-structured interviews, where participants rated their stages of grief using the Five Stages of Grief and Four Stages of Grief scales. Data analysis followed the eidetic reduction process to draw the following conclusions regarding these women’s lived experiences: 1) the immediate experience of losing a mother was overwhelming and confusing; 2) participants' processes of grieving shaped them in highly individualized ways; 3) most participants developed a mixture of positive and negative navigation systems; and 4) faith was helpful for some but not all participants. Those experiencing grief and bereavement need to know that they are not alone, thus, they can benefit by connecting with others and sharing their experiences of loss with those who have lived through the same, as occurred in this study and should occur in future studies.Item Grief in the Digital Age: Examining How Digital Tools Influence Grief and Coping with Loss(2023-05) Fischer, Brittany; Summers, Kathryn; Blodgett, Bridgett; University of Baltimore. Division of Science, Information Arts and Technologies; University of Baltimore. Master of Science in Interaction Design and Information ArchitectureThis study aims to understand and explore grieving individuals and how technology is impacting their grief journey. The goal of this study is to understand existing research around grief and how digital tools like websites and mobile apps have been utilized by the bereaved. The literature review of this paper uncovered three common categories of digital grief tools which can be summarized as memorialization social connection and online grief support. While most previous research focused on each category individually, no research has been done comparing these categories with the same user group, nor has any other research examined the use of these tools during a diary study. This study also explores users’ preferences among these categories within the context of a digital platform. For this study, I will recruit participants who have experienced loss in the last two years and have them actively engage with a digital platform over the course of a 10-day diary study. Two platforms, the HealGrief website and the Actively Moving Forward mobile app, were selected because these platforms offer digital grief tools for memorialization, online grief support groups and social connection. Over the course of a 10-day diary study with 8 participants, data was gathered about how social connection, memorialization and online support influenced the participant’s grief and how participants viewed these tools in relation to their needs. Through participants’ responses, many usability concerns were noted that should be addressed by the HCI community to help guide future tools and features that can continue building on this sensitive subject matter to make digital grief tools more accessible to those coping with loss.