Page 62 - IJPS-10-2

International Journal of
Population Studies Experience of bereavement by suicide in later life

of knowledge production and using this democratization Acknowledgments
process to improve well-being in later life (Nind, 2017;
Hafford-Letchfield, 2016). To the best of our knowledge, The authors thank all those people who participated in this
this is the first study that has examined the role of learning study and shared their experiences. We also wish to thank
theory to nuance our understandings and capitalize on members of the project advisory group: Adele Owen,
people’s experiences of bereavement in later life. This was Queens Police Medal (QPM), Ruth Teacher, Naresh Mall,
further supported by the adoption of participatory research and Tim Woodhouse.
methods which helped to envision experience and provide Funding
a more nuanced understanding of the complexity of suicide
bereavement and discover knowledge that might otherwise The study is supported by new professors grant provided
go unnoticed (Faulkner et al., 2021). There were also by University of Strathclyde.
challenges in relation to process to build into the project
design and timeline, sufficient resources to provide authentic Conflict of interest
and realistic support for peer researchers who were coming The authors declare no conflicts of interest.
from a different learning standpoint themselves in terms
of rigor and keeping an audit trail regarding data analysis, Author contributions
which some projects are not able to do. Conceptualization: Trish Hafford-Letchfield
4.4. Limitations Investigation: Trish Hafford-Letchfield, Jeffrey R. Hanna,
Evan Grant, Lesle Ryder- Davies, Jolie Goodman,
This study has several limitations. First, the participants Nicola Cogan
in this study came from a UK context which may not be Writing – original draft: Trish Hafford-Letchfield
translatable to other global regions. Second, the recruitment Writing – review & editing: All authors
took place through established contacts and through social
media which may have influenced the participant sample Ethics approval and consent to participate
to those with existing access. Third, in hindsight, we did
not ask participants directly about the time that elapsed This study was conducted in accordance with the Declaration
since the bereavement in their interview which could have of Helsinki, and approved by the Ethics Committee of The
been a useful variable to explore different experiences over University of Strathclyde (UEC21/10). Informed consent
time in relation to the research questions. was obtained both written and verbally from the study
subjects before their participation in the study.
5. Conclusions Consent for publication

This study enabled an in-depth understanding of the lived
experiences of people bereaved by suicide and examined Informed consent was obtained from study subjects for
these through the lens of transformational learning publishing their data in an anonymized form.
to articulate new meanings on how people in later life Availability of data
can adapt and navigate their way through traumatic
experiences. To the best of our knowledge, it is the first Data can be made available on reasonable request from the
study that has examined the role of learning theory as a corresponding author.
means of nuancing this understanding which was enhanced
by the use of participatory research methods and brought References
added benefits in being able to articulate findings through Andriessen, K., Krysinska, K., Kõlves, K., & Reavley, N. (2019).
the added lens of those who also had lived experience. Suicide postvention service models and guidelines 2014-
Findings suggest that further research is necessary to 2019: A systematic review. Frontiers in Psychology, 10:2677.
generate practice-base evidence, which identifies the https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.02677
impact of bereavement by suicide on people in later life
and how their needs for support can be better understood Arbuthnott, A.E., & Lewis, S.P. (2015). Parents of youth who self-
to improve assessment and support. By capitalizing on injure: A review of the literature and implications for mental
health professionals. Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and
informal and formal learning opportunities, a more holistic Mental Health, 9:35.
response could lead to developing more service user-led
social, community-based, and therapeutic interventions, https://doi.org/10.1186/s13034-015-0066
which utilize the authentic knowledge of older people with Barlow, C.A., & Coleman, H. (2003). The healing alliance: How
lived experiences. families use social support after suicide. Omega, 47:187-201.

Volume 10 Issue 2 (2024) 56 https://doi.org/10.36922/ijps.0777