After Columbine: how people mourn sudden death

Responses to the rampage killings at Columbine High School were analyzed at the national level, the level of the community, and that of the family. In many cases people responded by undertaking "grief projects" involving manipulation of symbols, either in the creation of artwork, the decoration of existing structures, on internet websites, and in the raising (and occasional destruction) of memorial objects. Many of these projects were undertaken together to create a community of bereavement. It is suggested that these projects are best understood within the context of Worden's task model of mourning (Worden, 1991), particularly task three, "Adjusting to an environment in which the deceased is missing." The differences between mourning sudden death and anticipated death are also explored.