Death, Transition, and Resilience: a Narrative Study of the Academic Persistence of Bereaved College Students
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DEATH, TRANSITION, AND RESILIENCE: A NARRATIVE STUDY OF THE ACADEMIC PERSISTENCE OF BEREAVED COLLEGE STUDENTS Cari Ann Urabe A Dissertation Submitted to the Graduate College of Bowling Green State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY May 2020 Committee: Maureen E. Wilson, Committee Co-Chair D-L Stewart, Committee Co-Chair Paul Cesarini Graduate Faculty Representative Christina J. Lunceford © 2020 Cari Ann Urabe All Rights Reserved iii ABSTRACT Maureen E. Wilson, Committee Co-Chair D-L Stewart, Committee Co-Chair This study used narrative inquiry to focus on the lived experiences of undergraduate and graduate students who have experienced a significant death loss during their studies and have academically persisted in the face of adversity. The purpose of this research was to understand and describe how undergraduate and graduate students academically persist within higher education after a significant death loss. Providing this affirmative narrative illuminated the educational resilience that occurs following a death loss experience. Using educational resilience as the conceptual model and Schlossberg’s transition theory as the theoretical framework, the overarching research question that guided this study was: What are the narratives of bereaved college students who academically persist in the face of adversity? Participants included seven undergraduate and graduate students from three institutions of higher education across the United States. Participants engaged in two semi-structured interviews and an electronic journaling activity to share their death loss experience. Interviews were conducted face-to-face and virtually. Composite narratives were used to present the data from this study. The seven participants in this study were highlighted through four composite characters who met monthly at a Death Café. Findings revealed challenges that bereaved students experienced, including how their bond and relationship to the deceased were not always acknowledged by outsiders. Additionally, the distance from one’s support systems and a lack of finances often created obstacles to grieve and mourn. Most participants experienced more than one death loss, but often iv expressed a deep loss that was at the forefront of their narrative. Lastly, all participants shared how they were able to push through and persevere with their academics following their death loss. This research contributes to the growing literature on bereaved college students in higher education. v This dissertation is dedicated to my parents, Gail Mieko Urabe and Clifford Kazuo Urabe. vi ACKNOWLEDGMENTS What a journey this has been! In 2013, I did not realize how much my life would change after enrolling in this doctoral program. I have grown and learned so much during these past seven years, and I am so thankful for my biological and chosen family. Thank you all for believing in me. To my wonderful parents, Gail Mieko Sakai Urabe and Clifford Kazuo Urabe, thank you for your unwavering love and support. You both have been a part of this journey with me every step of the way. This doctoral degree has been an ultra-marathon, and you all have been my cheer team at every milestone. For all of the sacrifices you made for my growth and education, I want to say, THANK YOU! Your support of my educational and co-curricular passions has helped me to become the person that I am today. Thank you for all the words of encouragement, care packages, phone calls, visits, and help with my multiple moves over the years. I have never known such strong and selfless people in my life. I am so proud and grateful to have you both in my life. I also want to thank my loved ones who have passed. To my grandparents, Beverly Emiko Nakatani Sakai and Shota Sakai, thank you for always being there for me and encouraging me to do my best. I hope that I continue to make you both proud. To my Kauai grandparents, Ralph Hisashi Urabe and Katherine Shizuko Urabe, I am grateful for the time I got to spend with you. To my late niece, Kyla Marieko Meaney, you were the inspiration behind this manuscript. Thank you for changing all of our lives for the better. You will never be forgotten. Also, thank you to my dog, Chlobear, for being there with me through some of the most significant transitions in my life. vii Thank you to my friends who checked in on me throughout the years and offered their support throughout the doctoral process. Dr. Beth Hoag and Dorothy Hoag, thank you for the study sessions, dog walks, and your friendship. To my HIED cohort, it has been a pleasure getting to know, work, and learn beside you. To Dr. Matthew Cooney, Dr. Jeremy Doughty, Dr. Ardy Gonyer, and Lakeshia Dowlen, thank you for your friendship, encouragement, and laughs along the way. To Ellen Roysce and Jessica Strawberry Green-Barnes, thank you for being my accountability partners and for having virtual study sessions from across the country. To Darci Watanabe, thank you for your continued friendship over all these years. Thank you to my gatekeepers who reserved rooms for me and helped me to navigate your campus. This dissertation could have not happened without your help. Thank you for your generosity and for all the behind the scenes work that you did to make this research possible. I would also like to acknowledge Dr. Patrick Vrooman, for being such a great and understanding doctoral graduate supervisor during my time at Bowling Green State University. Next, thank you to my fantastic dissertation committee: Dr. D-L Stewart, Dr. Maureen E. Wilson, Dr. Christina Lunceford, and Dr. Paul Cesarini. Thank you all for your flexibility and support over the years. Thank you for sticking through this process with me and for helping me to finish this seven-year endeavor. I am thankful for all of your guidance and support over the years. Last but not least, a big heart-felt thank you to my participants. Thank you for letting me into your world and for trusting me with your stories. You are all such strong and resilient individuals, and I am so honored to have worked with you. viii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................. 1 Background of the Study ............................................................................................. 3 Statement of the Problem ............................................................................................. 4 Purpose of the Study and Research Questions ............................................................. 5 Significance of the Study ............................................................................................. 5 Organization of the Study ............................................................................................ 7 CHAPTER II. LITERATURE REVIEW ................................................................................ 9 Terminology ................................................................................................................. 9 Death and Society ........................................................................................................ 10 How People Die ........................................................................................................... 12 Natural Causes ................................................................................................. 13 Homicide .......................................................................................................... 13 Accidental Death .............................................................................................. 14 Suicide.............................................................................................................. 15 Survivors and their Death Loss Experiences ............................................................... 15 Adjusting to the Death Loss ............................................................................. 15 Normal and Healthy Reactions to Death Loss ................................................. 16 Poor Bereavement Outcomes ........................................................................... 16 Responding to the Bereaved ............................................................................ 18 Death Loss and Culture ................................................................................................ 18 Customs and Rituals ........................................................................................ 19 ix Culture and Family .......................................................................................... 19 Religion and Spirituality .................................................................................. 20 Gender and Grieving ........................................................................................ 21 Being Culturally Competent in Death-Related Matters ................................... 22 Theories about Grief and Mourning ............................................................................ 22 Early Paradigms of Grief ................................................................................. 22 New Paradigms of Grief and Mourning ........................................................... 24 Factors that Shape the Bereaved College Student Experience .................................... 26 Developmental Status ...................................................................................... 27 Identity Formation ..........................................................................................