Abstract Religious disaffiliation can be emotionally and relationally challenging. Research indicates that people who disaffiliate can experience grief, emotional distress, and even posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms. Research also indicates that disaffiliation can put strain on family relationships, yet exactly how this impacts the family system as a whole is much less understood. This qualitative study, using grounded theory analytic procedures, fills a gap in the literature by utilizing a systemic approach to explore the impact of religious disaffiliation on family units. Twelve participants from five different families representing five different religions were interviewed. At least one disaffiliated member and one affiliated member were interviewed from each family system. Results offered a deeper understanding of (a) the relational impact of religious disaffiliation and (b) the relational challenges of navigating interactions after disaffiliation. Six clinical implications are offered with the goal of helping family members understand their unique experience of this transitional time, process their emotions, enhance distress tolerance skills, and effectively communicate with one another in a spirit of kindness and respect to prevent relational wounds, expedite the healing process, and protect family bonds.

中文翻译：

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通过家庭系统的视角检查宗教脱节：对治疗的影响

摘要 宗教分离可能在情感上和关系上都具有挑战性。研究表明，脱离关系的人可能会经历悲伤、情绪困扰，甚至出现创伤后应激障碍 (PTSD) 症状。研究还表明，脱离关系会给家庭关系带来压力，但这究竟如何影响整个家庭系统却鲜为人知。这项定性研究使用扎根理论分析程序，通过使用系统方法来探索宗教分离对家庭单位的影响，填补了文献中的空白。来自代表五种不同宗教的五个不同家庭的十二名参与者接受了采访。每个家庭系统至少采访了一名非附属成员和一名附属成员。结果提供了对（a）宗教分离的关系影响和（b）分离后导航互动的关系挑战的更深入的理解。提供六项临床意义，旨在帮助家庭成员了解他们在这个过渡时期的独特经历，处理他们的情绪，提高承受痛苦的技能，并本着善意和尊重的精神有效地相互沟通以防止关系创伤，加快愈合过程，并保护家庭纽带。