The Stories Students Tell: TAT Stories of Bereaved and Non-Bereaved College Students in a Christian Evangelical University

摘要: The researchers analyzed, within an Evangelical Christian university context, bereaved and non-bereaved college students' Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) stories for themes of death, grief, general coping, religious coping. study measured: (a) how students in the throes their grief construct TAT stories, (b) differences coping between vs. women men, (c) chose who specifically mentioned death or themes. Results found that constructed with high frequencies Frequencies did not differ by bereavement status gender, but those mentioning even more often Religious emerged infrequently. greatly from a prior at secular university, suggesting need to further examine diis group. Findings are discusscd light socio-historical context recent studies measuring student religiosity/spirituality. Implications research made. This manuscript is part larger examining incidence prevalence lives students. It builds on earlier (Balk et al., 1998) examined written through replication expansion consider population. assumptions we used this current included following: life crisis, cognitive models provide persuasive explanations crises, some aspects crises ineffable require free response data gathering techniques. (1) We seek explore these as they occur explicitly context. Sociohistorical Context Bereavement College today face specific provides new trend experience bereavement, loss. Technological advances have led environment where "connected" Internet forms social media nearly all time. Access information news reports ongoing, aware than ever global local violence form terrorist attacks, school shootings, bullying. ongoing exposure can create illusion proximity, which has been relate distress, post-traumatic stress, depression exposed shootings attacks (Blanchard, Rowell, Kuhn, Rogers, & Wittrock, 2005; Suomalainen, Haravuori, Berg, Kiviruusu, Marttunen, 2011). Most depressive symptoms subside after 11 weeks following violent events (Lindsey, Fugure, Chan, 2007), however, dealing stress emotional turmoil September experienced growth period time (Ai, Tice, Lemieux, Huang, 201 I). thus seem be adjusting changing environmental demands, growing personally spiritually; nevertheless, loss may shifted due perception too far off. Bereavement: A Life Crisis over someone's paradigmatic human crisis. Contemporary scholars into take lead influential work Lindemann his colleagues acute (Lindemann, 1944). was instrumental development what came known crisis intervention, much inspiration offering mental health services people were (see also Caplan, 1964; Leighton, 1959). manifests essential elements situation threatens well-being, typical skills prove inadequate resolve matter, failure cope well foreshadows serious repercussions (Moos Schaefer, 1986). Another constituent aspect contain themselves possibilities transformation, 9/11 (Ai al. …