Exploring the Experience of Grief in Organ Donor Families

Karimi  Monjarmooei, Yazdan; Afshani, SeyedAlireza; Ruhani, Ali; Mobaraki, Mohammad; Kalateh Sadati, Ahmad

doi:10.22054/qjss.2025.79978.2791

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

¹ PhD Candidate in sociology, Faculty of Social Sciences, Yazd University, Yazd. Iran.

² Professor of Sociology, Faculty of Social Sciences, Yazd University, Yazd. Iran.

³ Associate Professor of Sociology, Faculty of Social Sciences, Yazd University, Yazd. Iran.

⁴ Assistant Professor of Sociology, Faculty of Economic and Social Sciences, Bu-Ali Sina University, Hamedan. Iran

⁵ Associate Professor of Sociology, Faculty of Social Sciences, Yazd University, Yazd. Iran

https://doi.org/10.22054/qjss.2025.79978.2791

Abstract

Grief is a complex set of emotions, thoughts, and behaviors that individuals experience in response to loss or the threat of loss. One of the most significant contexts in which grief is commonly experienced is within the family, suggesting that grief is a fundamentally familial phenomenon. Accordingly, this study aimed to explore the experience of grief in organ donor families. Employing a qualitative approach based on Moustakas's transcendental phenomenological method, the study involved 17 organ donor families selected through purposive sampling. Data collection utilized in-depth interviews. The gathered data were analyzed under two main themes and six subthemes. These themes and subthemes encompass: grief (normal grief, psychosomatic grief, and complicated grief) and grief self-management (emotional self-regulation, spiritual self-care, sense of aliveness, family empathy, commemorative therapy, and family support). The findings revealed that grief is a multifaceted process, with organ donor families experiencing it at varying levels. These different levels have been associated with diverse physical and psychological consequences for family members. Organ donor families also managed their grief by turning to spirituality, expressing empathy and compassion for other families, regulating their emotions and feelings, seeking emotional support from their families, receiving positive feedback, and participating in commemorative ceremonies

Keywords

Main Subjects

Sociology

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Exploring the Experience of Grief in Organ Donor Families

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Volume 31, Issue 107 - Serial Number 107December 2024Pages 43-88

Volume 31, Issue 107 - Serial Number 107
December 2024
Pages 43-88