About Pauline Boss
Dr. Boss is renowned as a pioneer in the interdisciplinary study of family stress. Her work has focused on connecting family science and sociology with family therapy and psychology. Her multidisciplinary perspective has allowed her to work as a scientist-practitioner to develop theory that guides practice.
Since 1973, Dr. Boss has studied ambiguous loss, taught university students, practiced as a clinician, and trained family therapists, psychologists, counselors, and humanitarians around the world to help individuals and families suffering from the trauma of ambiguous loss and its grief that has no end. Drawing on research and clinical experience, Dr. Boss worked across cultures to develop six useful and inclusive guidelines for building the resilience needed to both bear the ambiguity and move forward to live productive lives.
Over the course of her research, Dr. Boss has worked with families in New York who lost family members during 9/11 and families in Kosovo who have lost family members as the result of ethnic cleansing and terrorism. She also has worked with families who have psychologically lost a relative as the result of Alzheimer's disease and other chronic mental illnesses.
Dr. Boss draws on her research (and that of others) and her forty years of clinical experience to develop a powerful but flexible therapeutic approach for this heretofore unrecognized but ubiquitous type of loss. The fundamental tools of the theory and practice, described by Dr. Boss in the Ambiguous Loss Online Training and in her writings, are the six guidelines for therapists and practitioners as well as for concerned family members and friends who, despite ambiguous loss, need to find new hope and meaning in life. At this time, the ambiguous loss model, as updated, is being used to ease the pain and trauma for various kinds of ambiguous losses and across different cultures and contexts, including therapists in the Ukraine, Israel, and Italy.
Dr. Boss received her Ph.D. in Child Development and Family Studies from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1975 and was a member of the faculty at the University of Wisconsin-Madison from 1975 to 1981. She joined the Department of Family Social Science at the University of Minnesota in 1981 and was a full professor until her retirement. During a sabbatical in 1995-96, Dr. Boss was appointed Visiting Professor at the Harvard Medical School, and in 2004-2005, she was awarded Moses Distinguished Professor at Hunter School of Social Work in New York City. She retired in 2005 and was awarded Emeritus Professor status.
She is a Fellow in the American Psychological Association, the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy, and the National Council on Family Relations (NCFR) of which she is also a former president.
Books by Dr. Boss
Boss, P. (2022). The myth of closure: Ambiguous loss in a time of pandemic and change. W. W. Norton.
Boss, P., & Bryant, C. M., & Mancini, J. (2017). Family stress management: A contextual approach. Sage.
Boss, P. (2011). Loving someone who has dementia: How to find hope while coping with stress and grief. Jossey-Bass/Wiley.
Boss, P. (2002). Family stress management: A contextual approach (2nd ed.). Sage. (1st edition, 1988).
Boss, P., Doherty, W., LaRossa, R., Schumm, W., & Steinmetz, S. (Eds.). (1993). Sourcebook of family theories and methods: A contextual approach. Plenum.
Selected Articles & Chapters
Boss, P. (2026). Quantify or classify? Recommendations for ambiguous loss versus boundary ambiguity. Journal of Family Theory & Review, 18(1), 7-12.
Mendenhall, T., & Boss, P. (2022). Ambiguous loss: Application and Theoretical Extensions. In Sourcebook of Family Theories and Methodologies, 513-529. Springer.
Dahl, C. M., & Boss, P. (2020). Ambiguous loss: Theory-based guidelines for therapy with individuals, families, and communities. In K. S. Wampler, M. Rastogi, & R. Singh (Eds.), Systemic family therapy and global health issues; Vol. 4 (pp.127-151). John Wiley & Sons.
Boss, P. (2017). Families of the missing: Psychosocial effects and therapeutic approaches. International Review of the Red Cross, 99(905), 519–534.
Boss, P. (2016). The context and process of theory development: The story of ambiguous loss [Special issue: Ambiguous Loss Theory]. Journal of Family Theory & Review, 8, 268-286.
Boss, P. (2007). Ambiguous loss theory: Challenges for scholars and practitioners. [Special issue: Ambiguous Loss and Boundary Ambiguity]. Family Relations, 56(2), 105-111.
Boss, P. (2004). Ambiguous loss research, theory, and practice: Reflections after 9/11. Journal of Marriage & Family, 66(3), 551-566. (Burgess Award address)
PAULINE BOSS, PH.D. CURRICULUM VITAE
University of Minnesota
St. Paul, MN 55108
E-mail: pboss@umn.edu
ambiguousloss.com
IDENTIFICATION
- NAME: Pauline Elsbeth Boss
- BIRTHPLACE: New Glarus, Wisconsin
- CURRENT TITLE Emeritus Professor, Department of Family Social Science
FORMAL EDUCATION
- 1975 PhD, University of Wisconsin-Madison Child Development and Family Studies (Minor: Family Therapy)
- 1971 MS, University of Wisconsin-Madison Child Development and Family Studies
- 1956 BS, University of Wisconsin-Madison Education
POSITIONS HELD
- 1984-present Professor, Department of Family Social Science, University of Minnesota. Emeritus, 2005
- 2004-2005 Distinguished Moses Professor, Hunter School of Social Work, New York City
- 1998-2003 Appointed to Advisory Panel, Family Research Consortium III: Implementing Diversity in Family Research, National Institute on Mental Health
- 1995-96 Visiting Professor of Psychology, Harvard Medical School, Department of Psychiatry, Judge Baker Children's Center (formal appointment for one year)
- 1987-1991 Director of Graduate Studies, Department of Family Social Science, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, Minnesota (on sabbatical 88-89)
- 1988 Visiting Professor, Andrus Gerontological Center, University of Southern California
- 1981-1986 Director, AAMFT Family Therapy Training Program (AAMFT approval earned 1986)
- 1981-1984 Associate Professor, Department of Family Social Science, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, Minnesota (tenured)
- 1980-1984 Lecturer on Family Stress: United States Army War College, Carlisle, PA
- 1980-1981 Associate Professor, Department of Child and Family Studies, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin (tenured)
- 1975-1980 Assistant Professor, Department of Child and Family Studies, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin
- 1973-1975 Lecturer, Department of Child and Family Studies, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin
- 1976-Present Family Therapist in private practice (part time) AAMFT supervisory status; State of MN licensure # 0641; supervisory status
View or download Dr. Boss's complete CV
Dr. Boss has transitioned to emeritus status and currently limits her correspondence to press and media engagements. Journalists should reach out at pboss@umn.edu.
Deepen your understanding of ambiguous loss
Learn more about Ambiguous Loss
Learn more about Ambiguous Loss and its author by visiting the Ambiguous Loss website.
For any further concerns or general inquiries regarding AL, contact Stacey Horn, Family Social Science Department Head, at sshorn@umn.edu.
Earn a certificate in Ambiguous Loss
The University of Minnesota’s Department of Family Social Science offers an online noncredit certificate program led by Pauline Boss, PhD.
To discuss the Ambiguous Loss certificate, please reach out to Sophia Shepeck at shepe049@umn.edu.
Support Ambiguous Loss research and training
Support research, teaching and scholarship into Ambiguous Loss with a gift to the Family Social Science Dr. Pauline Boss Professorship in Ambiguous Loss fund. Your gift ensures this important work continues.