PRE-CONFERENCE WORKSHOP: Meaning reconstruction and the experience of loss
Robert A. Neimeyer
Abstract
The field of grief counseling is currently in a state of revolution.
Older concepts of grief as a series of predictable emotional stages are
being displaced by more clinically rich models that emphasize the often
subtle ways in which the bereaved individual's sense of self and world
are profoundly challenged by significant losses of persons, projects, places,
and possessions. Working from this emerging perspective, we will explore
a model of grieving as a process of meaning reconstruction, and consider
its relevance for counseling practice. In particular, we will have an opportunity
for "hands on" practice with a variety of therapeutic strategies, ranging
from meaning reconstruction interviews, through metaphoric listening, to
narrative means of promoting perspective taking on past losses. Using a
blend of lecture, live and videotape demonstrations, and experiential exercises,
this intermediate workshop will help participants translate the cutting
edge of grief theory into concrete clinical applications.
Robert A. Neimeyer, Ph.D., is a Professor of Psychology at the University
of Memphis, USA, where he maintains an active therapy practice. He is Co-Editor
of the Journal of Constructivist Psychology, Editor of Death Studies, and
author of Lessons of Loss: A Guide to Coping (1998, McGraw Hill), as well
as 15 other books on constructive and death and loss issues. Neimeyer is
also Past President o the Association for Death Education and Counseling,
which recently granted him its Research Recognition Awardfor his scholarly
contributions.
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