EXPLORATION OF COVID-19 LOCKDOWN AND MENTAL HEALTH Honouring the Dead: The Psychological Consequences of the COVID-19 Lockdown Restrictions on Burial Practices and Rituals, amongst AmaXhosa from the Eastern Cape, South Africa
Year: 2023
Type: article
Abstract: Honouring the dead is upheld in religions and cultures across the world and embedded in rituals and rites of passage that must be adhered to. In many instances, religio-cultural beliefs synthesise or overlap, creating a mutual influence on the person. These religio-cultural rituals are symbolic and important for the living, but they are also equally important for the dead in order to ensure that their souls are returned to the source of their belief system. The COVID- 19 lockdown restrictions in South Africa altered death ceremonies and rituals by limiting social gatherings to 50 people to ensure safety protocols like mask wearing and physical distancing. Additionally, family members were prohibited from interacting with the deceased’s body, including performing rituals like washing and dressing, to prevent virus spread. The resultant psychological consequences of these changes to burial practices have not been fully explored in the South African context, and given the importance rituals play, it becomes important to understand them. Studying the psychological consequences of the changes provided insights into individuals’ grief and loss coping in the absence of traditional burial rituals and practices. This is aimed at assisting with the development of interventions for mental health and well- being in future crises. The study explored the psychological consequences of COVID-19 lockdown restrictions on AmaXhosa burial practices and rituals in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. AmaXhosa have a rich cultural heritage that places great significance on death and burial rituals. These rituals serve as a way to honour and remember the deceased, provide closure for the bereaved, and maintain social cohesion within the community. The absence of these rituals during the COVID-19 lockdown had consequences for the AmaXhosa’s psychological and religio-cultural well-being. The exploration of their experiences was thus important because it shed light on the importance of these rituals and will help devise innovative ways to address their psychological needs during times of loss. The study utilised a qualitative method, conducting interviews with AmaXhosa aged 18 and older. Participants v EXPLORATION OF COVID-19 LOCKDOWN AND MENTAL HEALTH were drawn from the AmaXhosa communities in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the interviews, and the main findings were reported as themes. The study adhered to ethical principles such as informed consent, voluntary participation, anonymity, confidentiality, and avoiding harm to participants. The study findings revealed emotional distress and loss for participants who couldn’t participate in traditional burial rituals and practices during the lockdown. Using the Kubler- Ross model as a lens to explore the grieving stages, findings from this study indicated that participants who buried their loved ones during the lockdown, and who were not able to perform the burial practices, did not get closure, nor did they reach the acceptance stage. This was because they were still alternating between the other four stages of the model. Although the universal grief stages experienced are denial, anger, bargaining, and depression during a loss, findings from this study revealed that there might be a non-acceptance that accompanies the acceptance stage. This non-acceptance is characterised by a struggle to come to terms with or accept the loss as experienced on a spiritual level. Participants in this study reported feelings of sadness, helplessness, and a sense of being stuck in non-acceptance, which prevented them from experiencing acceptance as described by the current understanding of the term. It is important for researchers and mental health practitioners to further explore and understand this unique stage in the grieving process to provide appropriate support and interventions for individuals experiencing this type of loss. Guidelines were developed to assist mental health practitioners in working with individuals who couldn’t conduct necessary religio-cultural burial rituals due to unforeseen circumstances like the global pandemic. The lack of proper honouring of the deceased through burial rituals and practices can result in complicated grief and long-term psychological consequences that require further study and attention.
Author: Sibam-Twalo, Z
Language: English
Subfield: Clinical Psychology
Field: Psychology
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7220758383