The Two Meanings of Meaning: A Proposal for Conceptual Distinction to Grief Studies

Abstract

In the field of psychological research on grief, the word meaning is often translated into two different Portuguese terms (significado and sentido), so that an easy distinction between them is not identified. Therefore, the present study aimed to propose a conceptual differentiation between these two terms concerning to grief, based on a narrative review of fundamentals of the Theory of Meaning Reconstruction, and the Logotherapy, which is a meaning-centered psychology. A theoretical synthesis is presented based on the discussion and contrast between constructivist and phenomenological assumptions, respectively. On the one hand, a first translation of meaning (significado) is proposed as a result of the retrospective of the loss' history, and the relationship between the bereaved and the deceased; on the other hand, a second translation of meaning (sentido) is described as a process of identifying and actualizing the possibilities of shaping the self into the relationship between the bereaved and the lived world. While the first one is limited to the crisis situation presented by the rupture of a bond, the second one is presented as an inherent characteristic of human existence in its integrality. Eventually, possible developments of this proposal are suggested to the knowledge and practices of psychology concerning to the theme of bereavement.