Identifying elderly with coping difficulties after two years of bereavement

Journal ArticleThis study answers three research questions. First, what proportion of the elderly are experiencing major coping difficulties after two years of bereavement? Second, what factors in early bereavement distinguish between those with difficulties and the others? Third, what set of factors are the best predictors of coping difficulties at two years? Of the 138 persons who completed a two-year longitudinal study of bereavement, twenty-five (18%) were found to be having difficulties after two years according to a scale which combined perceived stress, coping, and depression. The poor copers did not differ from the others with respect to any of the sociodemographic, health, or social support variables. However, those who were poor copers had lower self-esteem, experienced several feelings/behaviors with greater intensity/frequency in early bereavement. Low self-esteem, even prior to bereavement, is likely to be predictive of coping difficulties two years following the death of a spouse. Three weeks after the spouse's death, the poor copers expressed confusion and a desire to die with greater intensity. They also were less likely to be proud of how they were managing the death, they cried more frequently, and did not try to keep as busy in this early bereavement period

Impact of bereavement on the self-conceptions of older surviving spouses

Journal ArticleThe purpose of this longitudinal study was to assess the extent to which the social anchorage dimension of the self-concept is impacted by the death of a spouse among a sample of older surviving spouses. Social anchorage was measured by the Twenty Statements Test (TST) in mailed questionnaires and consisted of self-statements that signify important social relationships and group memberships