Bereavement Theory

The traditional perspective of grief originated from a positivist philosophy that investigated the individual nature of bereavement as opposed to an individual in relation to other individuals and to the environment. Throughout the twentieth century, the goal of bereavement was a return to ordinary activities and to pre-loss functioning, which required the bereaved to sever emotional bonds with decedents. Doka (2005) and Freud
(1917/1957) articulated that the severing of emotional bonds occurred through a process in which the bereaved disengaged emotionally from the decedents and simultaneously dissolved any remnants of the former shared dreams and memories. Walter (1996) pointed out that traditionally relationships served a specific purpose,