RESEARCH_FILE
George A. Bonanno
Teachers College, Columbia University
Known for:Prospective studies of bereavement showing resilience is the most common grief trajectory
Key findings
- 2002
In a prospective study measuring people from before the loss through 18 months after, resilience (low, stable distress) was the most common trajectory at 45.9% — while the culturally expected pattern of high distress followed by recovery fit only about 11%. Resilience to Loss and Chronic Grief: A Prospective Study from Preloss to 18-Months Postloss ↗
- 2004
Resilience after loss and potential trauma is ordinary, not rare — and low visible grieving is usually a sign of healthy adjustment, not denial or a 'delayed grief' waiting to erupt. Loss, Trauma, and Human Resilience: Have We Underestimated the Human Capacity to Thrive After Extremely Aversive Events? ↗
- 2004
Across the CLOC widowhood data, five distinct outcome trajectories emerged — and pre-loss characteristics, not 'grief work', predicted who ended up in which one. Prospective Patterns of Resilience and Maladjustment During Widowhood ↗