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Personal and Cultural Grief Rituals Among Earthquake Survivors in Türkiye

Cilt: 9 Sayı: 2 24 Aralık 2025
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Personal and Cultural Grief Rituals Among Earthquake Survivors in Türkiye

Öz

This phenomenological study explored the grief ritual experiences of individuals who lost one or more loved ones in the February 6, 2023 earthquake in Türkiye, based on Continuing Bonds Theory. The sample consisted of ten adults (7 women, 3 men; aged 20-51) who experienced the disaster in Kahramanmaraş, its epicenter. Data were collected through semi-structured interview questions and analyzed using the Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) approach. Our findings indicated that participants engaged in grief rituals that were either rooted in cultural traditions or constructed according to their personal preferences. Both personal and culturally grounded rituals were found to serve key functions in supporting emotional regulation, maintaining ongoing connections with the deceased, providing opportunities for social support, and facilitating the acceptance of loss. However, our findings also revealed that guilt may arise when individuals do not adhere to expected grief rituals. All findings were discussed in light of the relevant literature.

Anahtar Kelimeler

grief, grief rituals, earthquake survivors, phenomenological study

Destekleyen Kurum

Bu araştırma herhangi bir dış fon desteği almamıştır.

Etik Beyan

Gerekli etik izinler, TED Üniversitesi İnsan Araştırmaları Etik Kurulu’ndan alınmıştır (Karar No: 2023-20; Tarih: 12.08.2023).

Kaynakça

  1. Aadil, M., & Shahzaib, R. (2024). Contextual representation of mourning rituals: A case study of rural Punjab (Pakistan). Journal of Asian Development Studies, 13(3), 131–137. https://doi.org/10.62345/jads.2024.13.3.12
  2. AFAD. (2024, February 5). Internet access—Asrın felaketi’nin birinci yılında afet iletişim sempozyumu [Disaster communication symposium on the first anniversary of the disaster of the century]. Asrın Felaketi’nin Birinci Yılında Afet İletişim Sempozyumu. afad.gov.tr
  3. Aksöz-Efe, İ., Erdur-Baker, O., & Servaty-Seib, H. (2018). Death rituals, religious beliefs, and grief of Turkish women. Death Studies, 42(9), 579–592. https://doi.org/10.1080/07481187.2017.1407379
  4. Ashai, S., & O’Brien, K. M. (2021). Coping with loss: Understanding growth and grief in Kashmiri students. The Counseling Psychologist, 49(6), 786–817. https://doi.org/10.1177/00110000211011750
  5. Black, J., Belicki, K., Emberley-Ralph, J., & McCann, A. (2022). Internalized versus externalized continuing bonds: Relations to grief, trauma, attachment, openness to experience, and posttraumatic growth. Death Studies, 46(2), 399–414. https://doi.org/10.1080/07481187.2020.1737274
  6. Bonsu, S. K., & DeBerry-Spence, B. (2008). Consuming the dead. Journal of Contemporary Ethnography, 37(6), 694–719. https://doi.org/10.1177/0891241607310631
  7. Bucuka, Y. (2021). COVID-19 kaynaklı ölümlerde yerine getirilemeyen ritüeller ve ölümün toplumsal bağlamından uzaklaşması [Unfulfilled rituals in deaths due to COVID-19 and the distancing of death from its social context]. Toplum ve Sosyal Hizmet, COVID-19 Özel Sayı 1, 103–123. https://doi.org/10.33417/tsh.1004546
  8. Carmassi, C., Bertelloni, C. A., Gesi, C., Conversano, C., Stratta, P., Massimetti, G., ... & Dell’Osso, L. (2017). New DSM-5 PTSD guilt and shame symptoms among Italian earthquake survivors: Impact on maladaptive behaviors. Psychiatry Research, 251, 142–147. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychres.2016.11.026
  9. Daniel, T. (2023). Adding a new dimension to grief counseling: Creative personal ritual as a therapeutic tool for loss, trauma and transition. OMEGA—Journal of Death and Dying, 87(2), 363–376. https://doi.org/10.1177/00302228211019209
  10. Djelantik, A. M. J., Smid, G. E., Mroz, A., Kleber, R. J., & Boelen, P. A. (2020). The prevalence of prolonged grief disorder in bereaved individuals following unnatural losses: Systematic review and meta regression analysis. Journal of Affective Disorders, 265, 146–156. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2020.01.034

Kaynak Göster

APA
Özcan, H. E., & Ünlü Kaynakçı, F. Z. (2025). Personal and Cultural Grief Rituals Among Earthquake Survivors in Türkiye. Gaziantep Üniversitesi Eğitim Bilimleri Dergisi, 9(2), 281-300. https://izlik.org/JA29SG57MW
AMA
1.Özcan HE, Ünlü Kaynakçı FZ. Personal and Cultural Grief Rituals Among Earthquake Survivors in Türkiye. GAUN-JES. 2025;9(2):281-300. https://izlik.org/JA29SG57MW
Chicago
Özcan, Huri Elif, ve Fatma Zehra Ünlü Kaynakçı. 2025. “Personal and Cultural Grief Rituals Among Earthquake Survivors in Türkiye”. Gaziantep Üniversitesi Eğitim Bilimleri Dergisi 9 (2): 281-300. https://izlik.org/JA29SG57MW.
EndNote
Özcan HE, Ünlü Kaynakçı FZ (01 Aralık 2025) Personal and Cultural Grief Rituals Among Earthquake Survivors in Türkiye. Gaziantep Üniversitesi Eğitim Bilimleri Dergisi 9 2 281–300.
IEEE
[1]H. E. Özcan ve F. Z. Ünlü Kaynakçı, “Personal and Cultural Grief Rituals Among Earthquake Survivors in Türkiye”, GAUN-JES, c. 9, sy 2, ss. 281–300, Ara. 2025, [çevrimiçi]. Erişim adresi: https://izlik.org/JA29SG57MW
ISNAD
Özcan, Huri Elif - Ünlü Kaynakçı, Fatma Zehra. “Personal and Cultural Grief Rituals Among Earthquake Survivors in Türkiye”. Gaziantep Üniversitesi Eğitim Bilimleri Dergisi 9/2 (01 Aralık 2025): 281-300. https://izlik.org/JA29SG57MW.
JAMA
1.Özcan HE, Ünlü Kaynakçı FZ. Personal and Cultural Grief Rituals Among Earthquake Survivors in Türkiye. GAUN-JES. 2025;9:281–300.
MLA
Özcan, Huri Elif, ve Fatma Zehra Ünlü Kaynakçı. “Personal and Cultural Grief Rituals Among Earthquake Survivors in Türkiye”. Gaziantep Üniversitesi Eğitim Bilimleri Dergisi, c. 9, sy 2, Aralık 2025, ss. 281-00, https://izlik.org/JA29SG57MW.
Vancouver
1.Huri Elif Özcan, Fatma Zehra Ünlü Kaynakçı. Personal and Cultural Grief Rituals Among Earthquake Survivors in Türkiye. GAUN-JES [Internet]. 01 Aralık 2025;9(2):281-300. Erişim adresi: https://izlik.org/JA29SG57MW