Information Seeking and Grief in Bereaved Emerging Adults: A Test of the Theory of Motivated Information Management

ABSTRACT

The death of a family member is a stressful event that can threaten familial cohesion. Communication can help families cope, but its effectiveness is dependent on context. Family communication about loss may be especially complicated for bereaved emerging adults and their parents, as this life stage is defined by independence and change. Using the theory of motivated information management (TMIM), this study examines the decision-making process bereaved emerging adults (N = 197) engage in when deciding whether or not to seek information about their parent’s experience with a family death, with an eye toward connecting information management and grief. Results support the TMIM and offer insights into the mechanisms that factor into the information management process of bereaved emerging adults.

KEYWORDS:

• Family death
• information management
• uncertainty
• efficacy
• parent-child communication

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.