New perspectives on the Dual Process Model (DPM): what have we learned? What questions remain?

In 1999, Stroebe and Schut published their seminal article on the Dual Process Model (DPM), a conceptual model which changed the direction of bereavement research. While earlier models of grief focused primarily on psychological adjustment in the wake of a severed emotional attachment, the DPM model places equal emphasis on practical—even mundane—daily life strains that follow from bereavement, such as learning new household management skills and establishing new relationships. In order to cope effectively, bereaved persons must “oscillate” between loss-oriented (LO) coping and restoration-oriented (RO) coping. The former refers to coping processes that focus directly on the stress of the loss itself, including symptoms of grief, loss, and sadness; the latter includes the processes one uses to cope with the secondary stressors that accompany one’s new status as a bereaved spouse. Oscillation is essential for optimal psychological adjustment; bereaved persons must attend to practical as well as emotional matters, and many may turn to RO activities as respite from negative emotions associated with the lost attachment. In the 10 years since Stroebe and Schut’s (1999) publication, many bereavement researchers have conducted empirical evaluations of specific components of the model. At the 2008 Gerontological Society of America’s annual meeting, a multidisciplinary panel of researchers spanning the fields of psychology, psychiatry, social work, and sociology came together to test, refine, and debate the model. The four papers presented in the symposium are published in this special issue. These papers represent a range of research methods, including