DR. BETH HOFFMAN
At the University of Pittsburgh, Dr. Beth Hoffman, Assistant Professor, Behavioral and Community Health Sciences, is a researcher who studies how to use media to educate and promote good health.
Dr. Hoffman’s previous work includes studying anti-vaccine rhetoric on Facebook, nicotine and tobacco misinformation on youth-oriented social media platforms, and the influence of social media on grief and coping.
Quote
‘“What is grief, if not love persevering.”
Spoken by Vision in the Marvel Disney+ show WandaVision
In early 2023, Dr. Hoffman became a researcher schooled in her own personal grief. Dr. Hoffman’s only sibling, Emily, was struck by a car near their parents’ home in Point Breeze and died a week later in ICU.
An organ donor, Emily’s kidneys were given to two separate people, her liver to another, and her corneas to a 9-month-old boy who will now see the world through Emily’s eyes. “That was the biggest comfort for me when she died,” says Dr. Hoffman. “Emily was a selfless, giving person. Donating her organs was her last gift to others.”
While grief happens to everyone, how we respond to it is as unique as our personalities and often a reflection of our culture. In the U.S., where many people value youth, self-sufficiency, and an unrelenting work ethic, grieving is often treated as a private problem that needs to be solved quickly so people can “return to normal.” However, Dr. Hoffman notes, “Grief is an ongoing process. It doesn’t move forward in a straight line. People tell you the first year without your loved one is the hardest. But in my case, years 2 and 3 have been more difficult.”
As a researcher who’s studied how social media can play a positive role in helping people cope with grief, Dr. Hoffman joined a Facebook bereavement group called TCF SIBS. TCF stands for The Compassionate Friends. In addition to the Facebook group, TCF SIBS meets virtually several times a week and supports any bereaved sibling older than 14. An international organization, TCF has local chapters throughout the U.S. and Canada.
Dr. Hoffman decided to join the Facebook group and attend a virtual meeting because she was hesitant to drive after her sister’s accident — and had a hectic schedule “TCF SIBS had a low barrier to entry,” she says. “It was what I could handle when I was wanting time at home.”
As part of the group, Dr. Hoffman experienced a deep sense of kinship and peer support. “When I question how I can go on for the rest of my life without my sister, I see people who have been grieving their sibling for 20 years,” she explains. “Their silent example helps me understand I can do this, too.”
She continues, “TCF SIBS is also a safe space where I can voice my unique feelings about losing my sister, which, it turns out, aren’t that unique at all. Loss is part of the human experience. We all go through it, whether it’s the death of someone we love or the loss of a job or relationship.”
Dr. Hoffman’s virtual connection with TCF SIBS led to an offline friendship and eventual in-person meetup with a new friend in Florida. “We discovered we have a lot more things in common than just our grief,” she says. “That has been an unexpected gift.”
Recently, Dr. Hoffman also attended TCF SIBS’ annual in-person conference where workshops ranged from Navigating Family Dynamics Before and After a Death to Nurturing Healthy Habits in Grief.
As a researcher and curious human Dr. Hoffman is now focusing her work through the lens of her grief. “How can we use scientific methods to develop a framework for grieving in the digital age,” she asks. “How does community fit into that? What does that look like for people with health disparities?”
According to Dr. Hoffman, this research may eventually lead to new ways of coping with grief. That could include a catalog of programs and podcasts that validate grief. Or best practices for influencers whose social media posts intersect with grieving. Or grief content for Hollywood screenwriters and directors. Or personal guidance on how to handle a deceased loved one’s online presence, cellphone, and other digital devices in a way that’s mindful of privacy and confidentiality.
Dr. Hoffman explains, “If you have your loved one’s cell phone and streaming service passwords, do you scroll through their texts, photos, and watch lists knowing you may find something unexpected? If you do, how do you handle that discovery? “If you have their Facebook legacy info, do you memorialize their page and allow people to post memories — or turn off that ability, so only you can post?
The research may also reveal ways to help someone who’s spending too much time grieving online and not enough time cultivating real-life relationships. “What’s an acceptable amount of doomscrolling when you’re grieving,” Dr. Hoffman asks? “When does social media start to interfere with your mental health and how do you deal with that?
One thing Dr. Hoffman personally recommends is for each of us to do our own advanced care planning for our online presence and digital devices, urge our loved ones to do the same, and not be dismissive about media’s importance.
“Media is what we make of it and for grief, it can be an amazing means of support and affirmation when you need it most,” she offers.
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