The nature of grief the evolution and psychology of reactions to loss - Archer, John (Routledge, 1999)
Includes bibliographical references (pages 256-296) and indexes
Introduction: What is grief? -- The historical background to grief research -- Accounts of grief from other sources -- The biological context of grief -- The grief process: an analytic approach -- The grief process: holistic views -- The resolution of grief -- The mental processes of grief -- An evolutionary view of individual differences in grief -- The relationship with the deceased -- Loss of a son or daughter -- Death of a relative or friend -- The influence of the age and sex of the bereaved
In this study on the evolution of grief John Archer shows that grief is a natrual reaction to losses of many sorts and he proves this by bringing together material from evolutionary psychology, ethology and experimental psychology
"The Nature of Grief is a new synthesis of material from evolutionary psychology, ethology and experimental psychology on the process of grief. It steps outside of the psychiatric and psychoanalytic perspectives that have dominated grief research for so long, and argues that grief is not an illness or a disorder but a natural reaction to losses of many kinds ... John Archer identifies grief as a common experience throughout all human cultures that has evolved from simpler versions in animals ... The Nature of Grief also considers the cultural and historical context of contemporary ideas about grief, discusses literary, biographical and other non-scientific writings, and includes a wide-ranging, comprehensive and up-to-date review of research. It will be of interest to developmental and clinical psychologists and all those in the caring professions"--Jacket