ABSTRACT
This chapter provides a quick overview of the psychosocial developmental notions that undergird the central importance of attachment in the lives of college students and the role and influence of social media in the lives of college students. The psychosocial developmental framework provides a persuasive structure for examining development during the college undergraduate years. Social media is also gaining popularity as an environment college students use to deal with bereavement. Bereaved adolescents also continue ongoing relationships with the deceased via social media. In addition to sharing grief emotions and receiving support, students also shared how they directly connected to the deceased using social media. Findings indicated that students used social media in three distinct ways: emotional expression; posting memories of the deceased; and speaking directly to the deceased. In the middle of The Bereavement and Social Media Use Continuum are students who use social media in a limited capacity.
