Death on Facebook: Examining the roles of social media communication for the bereaved

Kelly R. Rossetto, Pamela J. Lannutti, Elena C. Strauman

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

46 Scopus citations

Abstract

Although research has highlighted potential benefits social media sites present for the bereaved (Carroll & Landry, 2010; Sanderson & Cheong, 2010), there is also the potential for problematic effects (Kern, Forman, & Gil-Egui, 2013). This study examines the ways in which the social networking site Facebook was helpful and unhelpful to participants (N = 265) when someone they knew died. Analysis of 454 thought units revealed three themes describing participants’ experiences with communication on Facebook during bereavement: news dissemination, preservation, and community. The results suggest that Facebook communication is both beneficial and challenging for bereaved users, which may produce a coping paradox. Implications of grief-related mediated communication and the coping paradox are explored.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)974-994
Number of pages21
JournalJournal of Social and Personal Relationships
Volume32
Issue number7
DOIs
StatePublished - 22 Nov 2015

Keywords

  • Bereavement
  • communication
  • coping paradox
  • Facebook
  • grief
  • social media

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