Citation

Johnson SK, Zitzmann B. Omega (Westport) 2018; ePub(ePub): 30222818755285.

Affiliation

National Catholic School of Social Service, The Catholic University of America, Washington, DC, USA.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2018, Sage Publications)

DOI

10.1177/0030222818755285

PMID

29388482

Abstract

Grounded theory was used to generate a mid-range theory of the process of spiritual change in the lives of survivors of homicide victims. Theoretical sampling guided the selection of 30 participants from a larger study of spiritual change after homicide ( N = 112). Individual interviews were analyzed using a four-step sequence of line-by-line, focused, axial, and selective coding. Analysis generated a closed theory consisting of three fluids, consecutive but nonlinear stages. Each stage consisted of an overarching process and a state of being in the world: (a) Disintegrating: living in a state of shock; (b) Reckoning: living in a state of stagnation; (c) Recreating and reintegrating the self: living in a state of renewal. Movement through the stages was fueled by processes of spiritual connection that yielded changes that permeated the theory.

FINDINGS can be used to help practitioners address the processes that drive spiritual change in the lives of homicide survivors.

Language: en

Keywords

complicated grief; homicide survivors; meaning-making; posttraumatic growth; spiritual change