Youths are using Facebook to mourn loved one

Young people are increasingly turning to Facebook to mourn the loss of a loved one and to continue to ‘connect’ with the deceased’s digital profile.

The break in traditional mourning habits, where young people grieve online rather than at the graveside, is a phenomenon that can lead to trauma for the mourner if the posthumous digital profile is taken down, according to a counselling psychologist, Dr Elaine Kasket.

Having conducted extensive research on death in the digital age, Dr Kasket said Facebook was effectively “the world’s largest cemetery”, warehousing “thousands and thousands” of profiles of the dead and many of these have become “major sites” where mourners go to continue to post messages to the deceased.