Drefs, Michelle ArleneKhatkar, Jasmeet Kaur2024-08-202024-08-202024-08-15Khatkar, J. K. (2024). The role of school psychologists in supporting parentally bereaved children (Master's thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca.https://hdl.handle.net/1880/119429A small proportion of children and youth undergo grief over losing a parent, sibling, or another family member. Although parentally bereaved children comprise a low-incident, vulnerable population, they are at risk for developing mental health issues. Given that students spend most of their time in school environments, it is crucial for educational institutions to have mechanisms in place to provide ongoing individual support for bereaved students. School psychologists are well-positioned to offer direct services and consultation tailored to the needs of bereaved students; however, there is limited literature exploring the current level of involvement and training of school psychologists in supporting parentally bereaved children. The purpose of this study is to clarify school psychologists' role and perspectives on supporting parentally bereaved children at the school level. Semi-structured interviews were transcribed and analyzed using reflexive thematic analysis. The following six global themes were identified: (a) what does grief look like, (b) perceived supports and services that are necessary for grieving children, (c) addressing grief in schools: practices, policies, and responses, (d) school psychologists serve as a valuable asset for school communities, (e) barriers to implementation of services and supports, and (f) lifelong learning: continuing to develop and expand knowledge. This study explored the challenges and barriers that school psychologists face in supporting parentally bereaved children and aimed to identify existing strategies and resources that are effective in meeting the needs of bereaved students in school settings.enUniversity of Calgary graduate students retain copyright ownership and moral rights for their thesis. You may use this material in any way that is permitted by the Copyright Act or through licensing that has been assigned to the document. For uses that are not allowable under copyright legislation or licensing, you are required to seek permission.parentally bereaved childrengriefschoolsschool psychologistsqualitative researchEducational Psychologymaster thesis