De psychologische functie van het afscheidsritueel

Samenvatting

In this contribution the various functions of rituals are dealt with. It is stated that collective mourning rituals are increasingly deficient and more and more there is a need for mourning rituals that are individually constructed. When these rituals do not work the grieving process of the bereaved can be become complicated and the grieving can derange. In those cases psychological help is sometimes needed. In this article an example of a leave-taking ritual in a psychotherapeutic context is presented.