ABSTRACT
Adolescent bereavement must be viewed within the context of the period of adolescence. The normative life transitions encompassing adolescence both influence and are influenced by the non-normative experience of sibling bereavement. Literature regarding adolescent bereavement notes the impact of adolescence as a relevant factor in coping with a primary death loss (Corr & McNeil, 1986; Corr & Balk, 1996; Balk & Corr, 2009). Balk (1991) reviewed research conducted in the 1980s on death and bereavement and concluded that for adolescents, “bereavement presents an extremely serious life crisis at a time when development is marked by significant physical, cognitive, moral, interpersonal and psychosocial transitions” (p. 8).
