Theorists have long maintained that people react to major life events but then eventually return to a setpoint of subjective well-being. Yet prior research is inconclusive regarding the extent of interindividual variability. Recent theoretical models suggest that there should be heterogeneity in long-term stress responding (Bonanno, 2004; Muthén & Muthén, 2000). To test this idea, we used laten...

Bereavement is a universal human experience and mourning or grief is the typical response to bereavement. Infact, most cultures have well established mourning rites and patterns of behaviour expected of the survivor who has suffered the bereavement as well as for the community, so as to promote the resolution and recovery from this grief. However, precisely because it is considered a normal and...

BACKGROUND Despite a growing understanding of the effectiveness of bereavement interventions and the groups that benefit most from them, we know little about the cost-effectiveness of bereavement interventions. METHODS We conducted a cost-utility analysis alongside a randomized clinical trial on a visiting service for older widowed individuals (n=110) versus care as usual (CAU; n=106). The vi...

BACKGROUND General Practitioners (GPs) are well-positioned to provide grief support to patients. Most GPs view the provision of bereavement care as an important aspect of their role and the GP is the health professional that many people turn to when they need support. We aimed to explore GPs' understandings of bereavement care and their education and professional development needs in relation t...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE Even though cancer is the second most common cause of death, little is known about the extent to which family caregivers find meaning and benefit in the loss, and associated demographic characteristics and caregiving experiences. This study addressed this gap in our knowledge. DESIGN AND SUBJECTS Family caregivers participated in a nationwide survey for cancer caregiv...

Both grieving the loss of a loved one and using spirituality or religion as an aid in doing so are common behaviors in the wake of death. This longitudinal examination of 46 African American homicide survivors follows up on our earlier study that established the relation between positive and negative religious coping on the one hand and complicated grief (CG) on the other. In the current report...

the patient’s story, and enjoy the interaction with patients and families. They are also part of the full gamut of life experiences and events, often in dramatic fashion. Smithers noted that “opportunities for the close observation of the great variety of men and women under conditions of stress, suffering, relief and bereavement has been theirs; indeed they have seen more of the triumph of the...