Do not Click “Like” When Somebody has Died: The Role of Norms for Mourning Practices in Social Media

Abstract

Social media constitute new social spaces where the topics of death, loss, and mourning are increasingly encountered and negotiated. Users might either engage in mourning practices themselves or be confronted with other users’ mourning during their everyday social media use. The omnipresence of mourning in social media poses challenges to the users and increases the need for norms on how to engage in online mourning practices and how to react toward expressions of grief and mourning. This article systematically reviews 25 internationally published journal articles on norms guiding mourning practices and (non-)reactions toward these practices in social media. Three different types of norms related to different forms of practices are identified in the review. Results show that norms for mourning in social media are in flux and consistently negotiated between users. However, norms for mourning in social media often adhere to traditional norms that are adapted and reconfigured.