The Iatrogenic Consequences of Medicalising Grief
Resetting the Research Agenda
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 2250445 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Sarah Gurley‐green (0009-0003-3702-4567, University of Massachusetts Counseling and Psychology BEAHR Lab Boston Massachusetts USA, corresponding author), Lisa Cosgrove (0000-0003-3101-5726, University of Massachusetts Counseling and Psychology BEAHR Lab Boston Massachusetts USA), Milutin Kostic (0000-0001-6986-303X, Department of Psychiatry Faculty of Medicine University of Belgrade Beograd Serbia), Lauren Koa (University of Essex School of Health and Social Care Deputy Director of IPHW Colchester UK), Susan Mcpherson (0000-0002-9478-9932, University of Massachusetts Counseling and Psychology BEAHR Lab Boston Massachusetts USA) |
| Year | 2025 |
| Volume | 47 |
| Issue | 2 |
| Pages | e13866-e13866 |
| Publication date | 2025-02-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Sociology of Health & Illness (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0141-9889 • E-ISSN: 1467-9566 |
| Publisher | Wiley (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1111/1467-9566.13866 |
| PMID | 39607055 |
| OpenAlex | W4404822700 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 3 |
| References cited | 44 |
When the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) was published in 2013, there was a firestorm of controversy about the elimination of the bereavement exclusion. Proponents of this change and of the proposed 'complicated grief' designation believed that this change would help clinicians recognise major depression in the context of recent bereavement. Other researchers and clinicians have raised concerns about medicalising grief. In 2022 'prolonged grief disorder' (PGD) was officially included in the DSM-5-TR in the trauma- and stressor-related disorders section. Not surprisingly, there has been a push to identify biomarkers and to use neuroimaging to identify the neurobiological basis of PGD. Some researchers have even suggested that PGD is a 'reward circuit disorder' akin to addiction and that naltrexone, an opioid antagonist, may be a promising treatment. The purpose of this paper is to show how medicalising grief reinforces a research agenda dedicated to the search for pharmaceutical and psychological 'magic bullets.' Following George and Whitehouse (2021), we propose that an ecopsychosocial approach-one that incorporates environmental and contextual factors-is needed
Addiction · Complicated grief · Context (archaeology · DSM-5 · Grief · Psychiatry · Psychotherapist · Attachment and Relationship Dynamics · Grief, Bereavement, and Mental Health · Maternal Mental Health During Pregnancy and Postpartum · Psychology
Continuing Bonds
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders
Posttraumatic Growth
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders
Kinds of People: Moving Targets
The PHQ-9
Complicated grief treatment
Drivers of and Solutions for the Overuse of Antidepressant Medication in Pediatric Populations
Introduction
Reflecting on death
Looping effects’ related to young people’s mental health
Producing emotionally sensed knowledge? Reflexivity and emotions in researching responses to death
Testing the Grief to Personal Growth Model Using Structural Equation Modeling
Grief literacy
Conflict and antagonism within global psychiatry
Grief narratives
| Unique citing works | 3 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 3 |
| Citation span | 2026 - 2026 (1) |
| Citation velocity | current |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 3 |