Influences of religion and culture on continuing bonds in a sample of British Muslims of Pakistani origin
Publication date
2009Peer-Reviewed
YesOpen Access status
closedAccess
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
This study considered the nature of continuing bonds with deceased relatives in a sample of Pakistani Muslims living in the United Kingdom. Ten participants were interviewed following a cultural psychology approach and transcripts were analyzed using grounded theory methodology. Dreaming, talking with others about the deceased, following the deceased's example, keeping memories and mementos, and doing actions thought to help the deceased were forms of continued relationship found. These were intertwined with the process of grieving and were influenced by the family, culture, and religion. Religion was a strong influence on the prominence given by participants to finishing well and on the notion of doing actions thought to help the deceased. Cultural mores, such as the community, and collectivist ethos and the expectation that emotion would be expressed around the time of death, were found to be supportive for some but sources of tension for other participants. Expressing a continuing bond through following the deceased's example so as to make them proud or happy seemed to be reinforced by cultural roots in respect for elders. Participants gave instances of tensions in areas such as expression of emotion and communality versus individualism that arose as a result of their position between two cultural frameworks, some illustrating how assimilation into the host culture set up conflict with the expected norms of their family/ancestral culture. The study highlights how understanding different cultural and religious influences may enrich the concept of continuing bonds.Version
No full-text in the repositoryCitation
Hussein H and Oyebode JR (2009) Influences of religion and culture on continuing bonds in a sample of British Muslims of Pakistani origin. Death Studies. 33(10): 890-912.Link to Version of Record
https://doi.org/10.1080/07481180903251554Type
Articleae974a485f413a2113503eed53cd6c53
https://doi.org/10.1080/07481180903251554