Grief’s impact on sensorimotor expectations: an account of non-veridical bereavement experiences

Abstract The philosophy of grief has directed little attention to bereavement’s impact on perceptual experience. However, misperceptions, hallucinations and other anomalous experiences are strikingly common following the death a loved one. Such range from misperceiving stranger be deceased, phantom sights, sounds smells, nebulous quasi-sensory one’s presence. This paper draws upon enactive sensorimotor theory perception offer phenomenologically sensitive empirically informed account these experiences. It argues that they can understood as deriving disruption both expectations perceived opportunities for action, stemming upheaval bereavement. Different facets approach help explain different types post-bereavement Post-bereavement misperceptions accounted through way alterations result in atypical ‘amodal completion’, while bereavement ‘appearances’ fail form part usual patterns contingency. Quasi-sensory presence deceased resulting changes affordances. aims demonstrate explanatory value key aspects by highlighting how phenomenology it also illuminates certain areas which ought supplemented, especially if is tight connections between perception, affect, intersubjectivity salient grief.