Deictic and non-deictic reference at the online-offline nexus: Discussing death on Reddit

Caring for a loved one with dementia is an emotionally and physically demanding experience, often leaving caregivers feeling isolated and overwhelmed. On the dementia-related subreddit r/Dx, discussions of death are frequent and central, particularly among the most engaged posts. While death and loss are often perceived taboo in offline discourse, caregivers express faceted thoughts related to the topic in this digitally mediated discourse, finding empathy and understanding from the other users in return. This study analyzes the discursive construction of death-related experience through the lens of deictic and non-deictic reference. Drawing from 100 top-voted Reddit threads, the analysis explores how users employ personal, spatial, and temporal references to position themselves, navigate their caregiving role at the online-offline nexus and negotiate their roles within the community after the death of the person cared for. While death marks the end of the offline care role, it also alters the care partner’s role in the online sphere, either marking the user’s exit from the community, or contrarily emphasizing the continued involvement therein. Consequently, these posts serve as a basis for discussing the nature of the subreddit as a digital Community of Practice (CofP) exploring the bonds that tie individuals to this digital CofP post-loss.