Investigation of prolonged grief symptoms in bereaved adults within the context of continuing bonds, cognitions on continuing bonds, and meaning reconstruction

The prevalence and risk factors of the Prolonged Grief Disorder (PGD) were investigated in the present study. Besides, the predictors of prolonged grief symptoms and meaning reconstructure were examined. To this end, the Continuing Bonds Scale (CBS), Grief and Meaning Reconstruction Inventory (GMRI), and Prolonged Grief Scale (PG-13) were adapted to Turkish culture. In the scale adaptation phase, 306 bereaved adults who lost a first-degree family member (mother, father, spouse, sibling) at least 6 months ago and no more than 10 years were recruited. Similarly, in the scope of the main study, 271 bereaved adults lost a first-degree family member at least 6 months and no more than 5 years were recruited. Convenient sampling method was used to reach the participants. The prevalence rate of the PGD diagnosis was found as 11%in the adaptation study sample, and 10% in the main study. Unnatural nature of the death, young age of the deceased, and continuing bonds variables predicted the PGD diagnosis in both samples. The rate of severe depressive symptoms among participants diagnosed with PGD was 37% in the adaptation study and 30% in the main study. The ratio of participants with severe depressive symptoms to all participants was significantly higher in the PGD groups than in the non-PGD groups. The young age of bereaved, young age of deceased, unnatural cause of the death, the decrease of elapsed time since loss, and the higher scores of the Continuing Bonds Scale significantly predicted the prolong grief symptoms severity in both samples. In addition, the increase of the age of deceased, natural cause of the death, and lower scores on Continuing Bonds Scale significantly predicted the meaning reconstruction scores in both samples. The Moderator Analysis results revealed that the predictive role of continuing bonds on the PG-13 scores was significantly stronger in the group with high-level negative cognitions about their continuing bond experiences than the group with low-level negative cognitions about their continuing bond experiences. The findings were discussed in light of the current literature.