Social Connection, Support, and Identity in Grief Interventions: A Scoping Review

ABSTRACT

Experiences of grief following the loss of a loved one are shaped not only by the loss itself, but also by its effects on social relationships, group memberships, and sense of identity. Despite growing recognition of these social dimensions, it remains unclear whether current grief interventions adequately address the psychosocial processes underpinning bereavement and adjustment. This scoping review examined the extent to which grief interventions incorporate components of social connection, social support, and identity change, and whether these interventions reflect a social identity approach. A scoping review methodology informed by Arksey and O'Malley's framework and reported in accordance with PRISMA‐ScR guidelines was applied. Searches of PsycINFO, Scopus, and ProQuest, together with a targeted call for published, unpublished, and in‐progress research distributed through the authors' national academic society for social psychologists, identified 5591 records. Following screening, 31 studies met the inclusion criteria, comprising 25 intervention evaluations, four study protocols, and two intervention descriptions. Most studies were conducted in the United States (34.4%) or Europe (31.3%) and employed quantitative (51.6%), qualitative (22.6%), or mixed‐methods (25.8%) designs. Interventions commonly incorporated social connection or support through either content or delivery format. However, 55% of studies lacked a guiding theoretical framework, and only 19% explicitly referenced social or identity‐related theories. Although many interventions reported improvements in psychological or social outcomes, social and identity‐based processes were rarely measured directly. Current grief interventions frequently incorporate social elements in practice, yet rarely conceptualise or evaluate the social mechanisms underpinning bereavement. Findings highlight the need for more coherent, theory‐driven interventions that explicitly address social connection, support, and identity change during grief.