Beyond goodbye: daily emotion regulation sensed from deceased loved ones

Abstract

Background

Attachment theory posits mental working models of close relationship partners that function as a source of support in the partner’s absence, and experimental evidence shows that thoughts of living attachment figures provide stress buffering. Bereaved individuals may benefit from accessing mental representations of deceased loved ones as well. This daily diary study examined whether sensing emotion regulation from the deceased is associated with mental health outcomes in conjugally bereaved adults.

Methods

Grief and well-being were assessed at baseline and after a 14-day daily diary study. Each evening, participants chose from a list of emotion regulation strategies they sensed from the deceased on that day, in addition to brief ratings of well-being (comprised of life satisfaction, positive and negative affect) and grief.

Results

Widowed participants (N = 156) experienced greater negative affect on days when they reported many emotion regulation strategies they sensed from the deceased. However, between participants, those who reported more emotion regulation strategies from the deceased on average across the study period reported more positive affect and more life satisfaction compared to people who reported fewer strategies across the 14 days. There were no associations between emotion regulation sensed from the deceased and grief. Follow up analyses found no indication of reverse causation, but found moderation by time since loss.

Discussion

In the long-term, “imagined” emotion regulation sensed from one’s deceased partner was linked to positive mental health indicators. In the short-term, however, emotion regulation strategies sensed from the deceased were associated with greater negative affect.