Elisabeth Kubler-Ross developed a model of personal change after spending time analysing the emotional responses to grief by terminally ill patients. This model, commonly called the "Kubler-Ross Grief Cycle", identifies the human emotional response to change over time in a cycle that includes denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance.

This emotional cycle is not exclusive to the terminally ill, it also affects people and communities impacted by bad news. The important factor is not that the change is good or bad, but that the person or community perceives it as a significantly negative event.