Contrast the grieving process for survivors of homicidal death versus survivors of those who died nonviolently.

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

The grief literature indicates that most survivors of nonviolently bereaved family members eventually make a reasonable recovery and move on as best they can. By contrast, survivors of those who die violent deaths take longer to recover. Clinicians and researchers interested in bereavement believe that the grief process that follows the violent death of a loved one represents a distinctive type of grief response that requires special training and skills to treat effectively. The process of mourning, for families of murder victims, lasts longer, is more intense, and is more complex. The grief reactions of homicide victim survivors appear to be deeper, display rage and vengefulness more often, and result in longer-lasting anxiety and phobic reactions. The greater the perceived intentionality and malevolence of the murder, the higher is the co-victims’ distress. Co-victims often suffer from intrusive and repetitive images of the violence; nightmares; and episodic, turbulent emotions of anger and grief. Excessive yearning or searching for the deceased, feelings of loneliness or emptiness, a sense of purposelessness or futility, and emotional numbness or detachment are also frequent symptoms of grief brought on by the violent death of a loved one. In addition to these symptoms, homicidal death bereavement responses include rage, desire for revenge directed toward the killer, and frustrations with the criminal justice system.