DOI:10.6129/CJP.202206_64(2).0002
Chinese Journal of Psychology 2022, Vol.64, No.2, 151-174

Silence, Resolution, and Endurance: An Exploration of Grief Temporality in Bereaved Caregivers of Terminally Ill Cancer Patients

Wan-Lin Lee(Department of Clinical Psychology, Fu Jen Catholic University), Huei-Ya Chen(Department of Philosophy, National Chengchi University), Yaw-Sheng Lin(Department of Philosophy, National Chengchi University)

Abstract

The present study aimed to discover the temporality, the bereaved subjective time experience, in narrative texts after the cancer death of their beloved one. The research approach was hermeneutic phenomenological psychology. 4 bereaved caregivers were recruited and each of the participant was interviewed twice, with the second interview conducted after 6 months of the first one. The analysis revealed three general structures of time experiences: (1) time is out of joint: the deep quiet moment. (2) resolution time: nearing of the future. (3) duration of time: the coexistence of the past and the present. The subjective time experiences of bereaved caregivers might contradict the objective linear time assumption embedded in modern society, causing more feelings of isolation and loneliness of the bereaved. The death experiences have revealed the life essence of ab-ground, forcing the bereaved caregivers to confront their authentic self and to have resoluteness of their own lives. The article concludes by addressing several clinical applications associated with the bereaved temporality.

Keywords: caregivers, grief, phenomenological psychology, temporality.