title: A prospective longitudinal investigation of spousal bereavement examining Parkes and Weiss' Bereavement Risk Index.
abstract: The purpose of this study was (a) to describe spousal bereavement both prospectively and longitudinally and (b) to examine the validity of the Bereavement Risk Index (BRI) published by Parkes and Weiss (1). Psychological distress was measured in 46 subjects across five time intervals beginning prior to a spousal death from lung cancer and ending 25 months after the death using the Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI) (2). The hypothesis that the BRI discriminates between bereaved spouses at high and low risk for psychological distress was supported by measurements taken within two months of the patient's diagnosis (prior to death), at 6 weeks following the death, and at 6 and 13 months thereafter. These findings support the need for early identification of individuals at high risk for negative bereavement outcomes even prior to the spousal death.
authors.affiliation: University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing, Philadelphia, USA.
authors.forename: L A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Robinson
authors.forename: I F
authors.initials: IF
authors.lastname: Nuamah
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Lev
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: McCorkle
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001601:Bereavement; D005163:Factor Analysis, Statistical; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011581:Psychological Tests; D011594:Psychometrics; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D018454:Spouses / Q000523:psychology*