Impact of Bereavement Rituals on Psychological Wellbeing of the Bereaved among the Tiv People of Benue State, Nigeria

Abstract

Bereavement rituals are deeply ingrained in the cultures globally and are considered important for maintaining the psychological well-being of the bereaved. In Nigeria, they are an integral part of the cultural heritage rooted in social, cultural, and religious practices. The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of bereavement rituals on the psychological wellbeing of the bereaved among Tiv people of Benue State, Nigeria. The study adopted a Descriptive Survey Deign; and was conducted in Tiv in Benue State, Nigeria. Target population was Tiv in Benue State. Random sampling was used to select the 397 respondents who were bereaved Tiv People from the target population. Instrument for data collection was questionnaires. The data was analyzed using descriptive statistics. Specifically, mean and standard deviation were used in answering research questions 1 while correlation was used in answering research question 2. The study found that Cultural Bereavement Rituals affect the Psychological Wellbeing of the Tiv People in Benue State positively. It was concluded that bereavement rituals have influence on the psychological wellbeing of the bereaved among Tiv people. It was therefore recommended among others that, Traditional rulers should promote the act of cultural bereavement rituals practiced by the people such as wearing of traditional attire, participating in music and dance among others when they lost loved ones; the Church should create a Pastoral Programme to accommodate Tiv indigenous knowledge systems and Psychological Counselling to provide social counselling.