PSY 135 Personal Family Loss Analysis

PSY 135 - "Living With Loss, Death and Grief"

Project - Personal Family Loss Analysis

PURPOSE

To analyze the family's functioning at a time of loss in order to better understand the ways in which the family coped with the loss, and how the family's interaction influenced their ability to cope with the loss.

METHOD

Write a paper, in a narrative style, about a particular type of family loss or crisis situation.

Include in your paper a description of each of the following topics.

Use the topics as subheadings in your paper.

A. Family Situation

Describe the loss.
List the members of the family. Describe their personalities. If there were other people living with them at the time, list and describe them.
Describe the living environment.
How did the various family members relate to each other?
How did you relate to each family member?

B. Coping with Loss

Discuss how the family managed the major crisis, such as death, moving, divorce, loss of job, financial loss, etc.
Analyze how the family coped with the crisis?
How did the family readjust during and after the crisis?
What does the family's dealing with crisis tell you about its strengths and weaknesses, etc.?

C. Theory Devote one full page to this section.

Relate the coping styles to coping theories described in your textbook. Use at least 2 references listing the pages in your text describing the theories.
Explain why you selected the theory or theories. You may select more than one theory.
Relate the theory or theories you selected to your analysis of how the family coped with the loss.

D. Outside Influences

Were there any other people outside the family who exerted a strong influence at this time, (relatives, minister, doctor, boss, hospice, etc.)?
If so, who were they, and how did this affect the family?

E. Unfinished Business

Select someone in the family to whom you can communicate something important about this or a similar situation.

Write a letter to that person telling him/her what you want to say.
Attach it to your project paper. Don't mail it unless you really want to after the project is returned.
Put yourself into the other person's place and answer your letter as you think he/she might.

Is there anything you would like to change or have changed in your own family life?
What did you learn by doing this project? What more do you need to learn?

FORMAT/LENGTH

Your analysis must be at least 5 to 6 pages long, typed and double spaced.

Label each section of your analysis as above, A through E.

Devote 1 full page to the Theory section.

Use a cover page that includes the
- project name,
- your name,
- date, and the
- course name, number and section number (PSY 135.TC).
Staple all pages of your Project together.

Do not use a binder or folder as it cannot be returned.

Return to Project Sources.