Hyacinth Chiuba Okafor

Managing Loss and Grief Experiences: Perceptions of Loss and Grief Experiences Within Religious Burial and Funeral Rites and Rituals: Contexts for Counseling Hyacinth Chiuba Okafor

Bereavement literature indicated the need to understanding loss and grief experiences from bereaved individuals? perspectives and the context(Stroebe, Hansson, Schut, & Stroebe, 2008; Dillenburger & Keenan, 2005). The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore loss and grief experiences within religious rites and rituals vis-à-vis the context of counseling. Participants were 10 purposefully selected individuals who had experienced loss and grief, had participated in burial and funeral rites and rituals, and were 21 years or older. The main research question was: How do bereaved individuals perceive their grief experiences within the context burial and funeral rites and rituals? Data collection and analysis consisted of observations, unstructured interviews, and documents. A cross-analysis approach was used that identified 63 themes, which were collapsed into 11 major themes depicted and explained in three critical areas of concern namely; bereaved participants? grief experiences, bereaved participants? experiences of rites and rituals, and implications for counseling.