Investigation of the predictors of prolonged grief symptoms of people who have experienced loss of friend

Grief and loss are a normal process experienced by many, but in some cases, the grieving process is much longer and more intense than the normal period. This condition is called prolonged grief disorder. In this study, the factors affecting the symptoms of prolonged grief in individuals who have lost a friend were examined. These factors are demographic information, information about the loss experience, death anxiety, meaning in life, and perceived social support. Demographic information form, Turkish Death Anxiety Scale, Meaning and Purpose of Life Scale, Prolonged Grief Scale, and Multidimensional Perceived Social Support Scale were used in the data collection process of the study. The sample of the study consists of people between the ages of 18-65 who lost a friend at least 6 months and at most 5 years ago. In the study, 155 people were reached by convenient sampling method, and the prevalence of the diagnosis of prolonged grief disorder was found to be 10.3%. Pearson correlation analyzes were performed to examine the relationships between variables. According to the analysis, there is a positive significant relationship between prolonged grief disorder symptom severity and death anxiety. On the other hand, there is a negative significant relationship between the severity of prolonged grief disorder and the level of meaning in life and perceived social support. While there is a negative significant relationship between death anxiety and meaning in life, there is no significant relationship between death anxiety and perceived social support. Lastly there is a positive significant relationship between perceived social support and meaning in life. After Pearson correlation analysis, Multiple Logistic Regression analyzes were used to examine the variables predicting the diagnosis of prolonged grief disorder. Finally, Multiple Linear Regression Analyzes were conducted to examine the variables predicting the severity of prolonged grief disorder. According to the results, the increase in the level of death anxiety and closeness of the relationship with the lost friend significantly predicted the diagnosis of prolonged grief disorder. The increase in the death anxiety of the person, the older age, the increase in the level of being affected by other losses, the increase in the level of intimacy with the lost friend, the decrease in the level of meaning in life and the decrease in the time elapsed since the loss predict the increase in the severity of prolonged grief disorder symptoms. Finally, it was found that the variables of cause of death, unexpectedness of the loss, perceived social support and gender did not significantly predict the diagnosis of prolonged grief disorder and the severity of prolonged grief disorder symptoms. The research findings were discussed in line with the relevant literature.