Resilience factors among families following the trauma of losing a loved one

Abstract

This study aimed at identifying and describing resilient factors amongst Black South African (specifically the Pedi, Tsonga, Ndebele and Venda speaking families from Limpopo) families that enable them to bounce back following trauma of a loss of a loved one to death. The sample consisted of 375 participants, 199 of them having experienced trauma following a recent (three months and less) loss of a loved one to death in their nuclear family and 176 having experienced the loss of a loved one to death in their extended family in a year and more. There was an overlap in the use of resilient factors for both groups. The common resilient factors for both groups were indicated in the following scales: Family Hardiness Index (FHI), Social Support Index (SSI), Family Problem Solving Communication (FPSC) and Family Crisis Oriented Personal Evaluation Scales (F-COPESS). A unique factor for the recently bereaved was indicated by Relative and Friends Support (RFS). On the basis of the findings, different resilience factors were indicated for the recently bereaved as compared to those who lost a loved one more than a year ago as it was hypothesized. The results of the study should be interpreted with caution as the limitations are considered. Further research on resilience should focus on the limitations and recommendations of the study to help the bereaved families.