Self‐disclosure and identity management by bereaved parents

This paper studies constraints on self‐disclosure in interactions between bereaved parents and “civilians,”; or those who are not bereaved parents. The problem of self‐disclosure is examined through the lens of relevant face concerns. Bereaved‐civilian interactions are treated as a form of intercultural communication due to differing cultural identities and rules for communication. In analyzing communicative constraints, five motivations for self‐disclosure are explored for the potential interactional difficulties they create between bereaved parents and civilians. Motivations examined are Relationship Development and Enhancement, Reciprocity, Social Control (also called “Impression Formation"), Self Clarification, and Expression (also called “Catharsis"). Self‐disclosure is a salient form of communication for the bereaved parent because it is through this process that a fractured identity is healed.