| Summary: | 博士 === 高雄醫學大學 === 護理學研究所 === 97 === Stillbirth has been considered difficult to cope with, as the death is unexpected, the majority have not seen the child to mourn for, no memories or shared life experiences, and often lack of recognition for the significance of such loss by the society. Stillbirth was acknowledged as a major loss for women in the late 20 years. Grief following the loss is common human experience and viewed as a health issue. However, empirical research related to this topic is rare in Taiwan. Hence, the purpose of this study is to describe the process of Taiwanese women’s experiences of stillbirth and constructs a theory that can explain those women’s experiences. In order to understand the psychosocial process of women encountering stillbirth, a grounded theory method was used. Based on theoretical saturation, a purposive sample of 21 women was recruited in the study. The core category and related categories were identified using the constant comparative process. The core category of “searching for settling down and moving on with life” emerged, to which each substantive category relates. The core category comprises four stages: shattered maternal role, falling into a deep valley of life, searching a vent for life, and finding peace for body and mind. The antecedent conditions is a prerequisite for the healing process, which consists of the number of living children, gestational point of loss, religious belief, and whether employment outside the home. The intervening conditions contains what facilitated or hindered the process and consists of time since the loss, perceiving support from the mates, and social value and belief. Finally, the findings of this study not only generate a substantive theory of psychosocial process in stillbirth women, but also as the basis for future clinical nursing intervention.
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