Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-dh8gc Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-14T10:09:02.888Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

The experience of loss: Coping and the Seasons for Growth Program

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 October 2015

Erica Frydenberg ,
Dennis Muller  and
Clare Ivens
Erica Frydenberg*
Affiliation:
The University of Melbourne
Dennis Muller
Affiliation:
The University of Melbourne
Clare Ivens
Affiliation:
The University of Melbourne
*
Faculty of Education, University of Melbourne, Carlton, VICTORIA, 3010, Email: e.frydenberg@unimelb.edu.au
Get access

Abstract

School-based intervention programs to assist students process their grief over a death or loss have been implemented in schools, with few evaluations of such programs.This study set out to report on the evaluation of Seasons for Growth, which is an education program for young people who have experienced the loss of a parent or significant other through separation, divorce or death. Qualitative and quantitative methods were used to determine the program’s effectiveness for helping students cope with loss. The evaluation involved a total of 186 students aged between 12 and 18 years from eight schools in Australia. Results indicated that the Seasons for Growth program assisted female students cope with loss, with a less pronounced effect on coping in male students. Factors that may have reduced the effectiveness of the program were identified.

Keywords

copingLossSeasons for Growth
Type
Research Article
Information
The Educational and Developmental Psychologist , Volume 23 , Issue 1 , 2006 , pp. 45 - 68
Copyright
Copyright © Australian Psychological Society 2006

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Abdelnoor, A., & Hollins, S. (2004). How children cope at school after family bereavement. Educational and Child Psychology, 22(3), 85–94.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Amato, P.R. (2001). Children of divorce in the 1990s: An update of the Amato and Keith (1981) meta-analysis. Journal of Family Psychology, 15(3), 355–370.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Amato, P.R., & Keith, B. (1991). Parental divorce and the well-being of children: A meta-analysis. Psychological Bulletin, 110, 26–46.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Arnett, J.J. (2001). Adolescence and emerging adulthood: A cultural approach. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.Google Scholar
Aseltine, R.H. (1996). Pathways linking parental divorce with adolescent depression. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 37(2), 133–148.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Brown, A., Young, E., & Allen, M. (2003). The effects of divorce on children. Comminique, 32(3), NASP website access.Google Scholar
Charkow, W.B. (1998). Inviting children to grieve. Professional School Counseling, 2(2), 117–122.Google Scholar
Chase-Lansdale, P.L. (1995). The long-term effects of parental divorce on the mental health of young adults: A developmental perspective. Child Development, 66(6), 1614–1634.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Cherlin, A.J., Kiernan, K.E., & Chase-Lansdale, P.L. (1995). Parental divorce in childhood and demographic outcomes in young adulthood. Demography, 32, 299–316.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Christ, G.H., Siegel, K., & Christ, A.E. (2002). Adolescent grief. Journal of the American Medical Association, 288, 1269–1278.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Dyregrov, A. (1992). Children’s Issues. Paper presented at the Annual Conference Proceedings.Google Scholar
Elkind, D. (1981). The hurried child: Growing up too fast too soon. Reading. MA: Addison-Wesley.Google Scholar
Frydenberg, E., & Lewis, R.L. (1993). Adolescent Coping Scale Administrator’s Manual. The Australian Council for Educational Research.Google Scholar
Frydenberg, E., & Lewis, R.L. (1996). The coping strategies used by adolescents in intact and in separated families. Australian Journal of Guidance and Counselling, 6(1), 87–97.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Frydenberg, E., & Lewis, R.L. (1999). Academic and General Well-being: The Relationship with Coping. Australian Journal of Guidance & Counselling, 9(1), 19–35.Google Scholar
Frydenberg, E. & Lewis, R. (2000). Coping with stresses and concerns during adolescence: A longitudinal study. American Educational Research Journal, 37, 727–745.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Frydenberg, E. & Lodge, J.Australian Adolescence. In International Encyclopedia of Adolescence. New York: Routledge, p26–53.Google Scholar
Graham, A.P. (2004). Life is like the seasons: Responding to change, loss and grief through a peer based education program. Childhood Education, 80(6), 317–321.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Greenberg, M.T., Weissberg, R.P., O’Brien, M.U., Zins, J.E., Fredericks, L., Resnik, H., et al. (2003). School-based prevention: Promoting positive social development through social and emotional learning. American Psychologist, 58(6/7), 466–474.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gumbiner, J. (2003). Adolescent Assessment. Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons.Google Scholar
Harrison, L., & Harrington, R. (2001). Adolescents’ bereavement experiences. Prevalence, association with depressive symptoms, and use of services. Journal of Adolescence, 24, 159–169.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Hutchinson, M.J. (2005). How does childhood and adolescent grief impact academic performance and behaviour? Dissertation Abstracts International: Section B: The Sciences and Engineering, 65(9-B), check.Google Scholar
Johnson, R.B., & Onwuegbuzie, A.J. (2004). Mixed methods research: A research paradigm whose time has come. Educational Researcher, 33(7), 14–26.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Johnston, P., Thorngren, J., & Smith, A.J. (2001). Parental divorce and family functioning: Effects on differentiation levels pf young adults. The Family journal: Counseling and Therapy for Couples and Families, 9(3), 265–272.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
McCowen, D. (1988). When children face death in a family. Journal of Paediatric Health Care, 2(1), 14–19.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mearns, S.J. (2000). The impact of loss on adolescents: developing appropriate support. International Journal of Palliative Nursing, 6(1), 12–17.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Muller, D., & Saulwick, I. (1999). An evaluation of the Seasons for Growth program: Consolidated report. Canberra, A.C.T.: Commonwealth of Australia.Google Scholar
Murray, J.A. (2000). Loss in the lives of children and adolescents: Understanding a common aspect of adverse events. Australian Journal of Guidance and Counselling, 10(1), 95–109.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Noppe, I.C., & Noppe, L.D. (2004). Adolescent experiences with death: Letting go of immortality. Journal of Mental Health Counselling, 26(2), 146–167.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Parkes, C. (2001). A historical overview of the scientific study of bereavement. In Stroebe, M., Hansson, R. & Stroebe, W. (Eds.), Handbook of Bereavement Research: Consequences, Coping and Care (pp. 25–45). Washington, D.C.: American Psychological Association.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Patton, M.Q. (2002). Qualitative research and evaluation methods (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks, California: Sage Publications.Google Scholar
Richardson, C.D., & Rosen, L.A. (1999). School-based interventions for children of divorce. Professional School Counseling, 3(1), 21–27.Google Scholar
Ruschena, E., Prior, M., Sanson, A., & Smart, D. (2005). A longitudinal study of adolescent adjustment following family transitions. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 46(4), 353–363.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Sandler, I.N., Tein, J., Mehta, P., Wolchik, S.A., & Ayers, T.S. (2000). Coping efficacy and psychological problems of children of divorce. Child Development, 71, 1099–1118.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Sandler, I.W., Ayers, T.S., Wolchik, S.W., Tein, J., Kwok, O., Haine, R.A., et al. (2003). The Family Bereavement Program: Efficacy evaluation of a theory-based prevention program for parentally bereaved children and adolescents. Journal of Counseling and Clinical Psychology, 72(3), 587–600.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sattler, J.M. (1998). Clinical and forensic interviewing of children and families: Guidelines for the mental health, education, paediatric and child maltreatment fields. La Mesa, CA: Jerome M. Sattler.Google Scholar
Sun, Y. (2001). Family environment and adolescents’ well-being before and after parents’ marital disruption. A longitudinal analysis. Journal of Marriage and Family, 63, 697–713.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Walling, A.D. (2000). Are male gender roles unhealthy? American Family Physician, Nov. Retrieved from Find Articles (Nov 8 2005), http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m3225/is_3229_3262/ai_67051944.Google Scholar
Wise, S. (2003). Family structure, child outcomes and environmental mediators: an overview of the development in diverse families study. In Research Paper No. 30. Melbourne: Australian Institute of Family Studies.Google Scholar
Worden, J.W. (1991). Grief counselling and grief therapy (2nd ed.). New York: Springer.Google Scholar
Worden, J.W. (2001). Children who lose a parent to divorce and children who lose a parent to death. Grief Matters, 4(1), 3–5.Google Scholar
Worden, J.W., & Silverman, P.S. (1996). Parental death and the adjustment of school-aged children. Omega, 33(2), 91–102.CrossRefGoogle Scholar