Participation in an Educational Self-Care Program and Exposure to New Resources During Bereavement: An Exploratory and Descriptive Qualitative Analysis of the Pathfinders Program

Spousal bereavement is a stressful, grief filled period of transition occurring usually in later life. Research has shown one must be capable of assuming the tasks of the deceased spouse in order to have restored well being. This research examines the data of 84 participants in the Pathfinders Program, an educational self-care program for recently widowed persons offered through the Gerontology Center of the University of Utah and funded as a three-year demonstration project by the Ben B. and Iris M. Margolis Foundation. This study analyzed the effects of new knowledge, access to new resources, and social and intellectual stimulation during bereavement and active grief work. Findings showed increased knowledge of grief work and being associated with others also experiencing bereavement helped participants understand their own feelings. New knowledge, stimulation, and access to new resources assisted in making the transition to a new self identify as a single person less overwhelming. Results indicated the participants were applying new concepts and skills acquired in the program two and four months later. The participants' comments were analyzed as to whether their experience during bereavement supported the dual-process model of coping with bereavement by Stroebe and Schut (1999). Recommendation was made to include personal growth within future models of bereavement.