Existential isolation and prolonged grief in bereaved people: The moderating role of culture

IF 3.2 3区心理学 Q1 PSYCHOLOGY, CLINICAL

Clinical psychology & psychotherapy Pub Date : 2023-03-02 DOI:10.1002/cpp.2846

Ningning Zhou, Yiming Zhao, Kirsten V. Smith, Clare Killikelly, Eva Stelzer, Andreas Maercker, Juzhe Xi, Peter J. Helm

{"title":"Existential isolation and prolonged grief in bereaved people: The moderating role of culture","authors":"Ningning Zhou, Yiming Zhao, Kirsten V. Smith, Clare Killikelly, Eva Stelzer, Andreas Maercker, Juzhe Xi, Peter J. Helm","doi":"10.1002/cpp.2846","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div>\n \n \n <section>\n \n <h3> Objective</h3>\n \n <p>Existential isolation refers to an individual's awareness of the unbridgeable gulf between oneself, other people and the world. This kind of isolation has been found to be higher in individuals with nonnormative experiences, such as racial or sexual minorities. Bereaved individuals may experience a stronger sense of existential isolation and feel that no one shares their feelings or perceptions. However, research on bereaved people's experiences of existential isolation and its effects on post-loss adaptation is scarce. This study aims to validate the German and Chinese versions of the Existential Isolation Scale, investigate cultural and gender differences in existential isolation and explore the associations between existential isolation and prolonged grief symptoms in German-speaking and Chinese bereaved individuals.</p>\n </section>\n \n <section>\n \n <h3> Methods</h3>\n \n <p>A cross-sectional study with 267 Chinese and 158 German-speaking bereaved participants was conducted. The participants completed self-report questionnaires assessing existential isolation, prolonged grief symptoms, social networks, loneliness and social acknowledgement.</p>\n </section>\n \n <section>\n \n <h3> Results</h3>\n \n <p>The results indicated that the German and Chinese versions of the Existential Isolation Scale demonstrated adequate validity and reliability. No cultural or gender differences (or their interaction) were found for existential isolation. Higher existential isolation was associated with elevated prolonged grief symptoms, which was further moderated by the cultural group. The relationship between existential isolation and prolonged grief symptoms was significant for the German-speaking bereaved people but not significant for those from China.</p>\n </section>\n \n <section>\n \n <h3> Conclusion</h3>\n \n <p>The findings highlight the role of existential isolation in the adaptation to bereavement and how different cultural backgrounds moderate the effect of existential isolation on post-loss reactions. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.</p>\n </section>\n </div>","PeriodicalId":10460,"journal":{"name":"Clinical psychology & psychotherapy","volume":"30 4","pages":"862-872"},"PeriodicalIF":3.2000,"publicationDate":"2023-03-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"1","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Clinical psychology & psychotherapy","FirstCategoryId":"102","ListUrlMain":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/cpp.2846","RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"PSYCHOLOGY, CLINICAL","Score":null,"Total":0}

引用次数: 1

Abstract

Objective

Existential isolation refers to an individual's awareness of the unbridgeable gulf between oneself, other people and the world. This kind of isolation has been found to be higher in individuals with nonnormative experiences, such as racial or sexual minorities. Bereaved individuals may experience a stronger sense of existential isolation and feel that no one shares their feelings or perceptions. However, research on bereaved people's experiences of existential isolation and its effects on post-loss adaptation is scarce. This study aims to validate the German and Chinese versions of the Existential Isolation Scale, investigate cultural and gender differences in existential isolation and explore the associations between existential isolation and prolonged grief symptoms in German-speaking and Chinese bereaved individuals.

Methods

A cross-sectional study with 267 Chinese and 158 German-speaking bereaved participants was conducted. The participants completed self-report questionnaires assessing existential isolation, prolonged grief symptoms, social networks, loneliness and social acknowledgement.

Results

The results indicated that the German and Chinese versions of the Existential Isolation Scale demonstrated adequate validity and reliability. No cultural or gender differences (or their interaction) were found for existential isolation. Higher existential isolation was associated with elevated prolonged grief symptoms, which was further moderated by the cultural group. The relationship between existential isolation and prolonged grief symptoms was significant for the German-speaking bereaved people but not significant for those from China.

Conclusion

The findings highlight the role of existential isolation in the adaptation to bereavement and how different cultural backgrounds moderate the effect of existential isolation on post-loss reactions. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

查看原文本刊更多论文

丧亲之人的生存孤立与长期悲伤:文化的调节作用

客观存在隔离是指个体意识到自己、他人和世界之间存在着不可逾越的鸿沟。研究发现，这种孤立感在具有非规范经历的个体中更为明显，比如种族或性少数群体。失去亲人的人可能会经历更强烈的存在孤立感，并感到没有人分享他们的感受或看法。然而，关于丧亲者存在孤立的经历及其对丧亲后适应的影响的研究却很少。本研究旨在验证德文和中文存在隔离量表，探讨存在隔离的文化和性别差异，并探讨存在隔离与德语和汉语丧亲个体长期悲伤症状的关系。方法采用横断面研究方法，选取267名中文和158名德语丧偶者。参与者完成了自我报告问卷，评估存在性孤立、长期悲伤症状、社会网络、孤独感和社会承认。结果德文和中文存在隔离量表具有足够的效度和信度。没有发现文化或性别差异(或它们之间的相互作用)导致存在性孤立。较高的存在隔离与升高的长期悲伤症状相关，文化组进一步缓和了这种症状。存在主义孤立与长期悲伤症状之间的关系在德语丧亲者中显著，而在中国丧亲者中不显著。结论存在孤立在丧亲适应中的作用，以及不同文化背景下存在孤立对丧亲后反应的调节作用。讨论了理论和实践意义。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

求助全文

约1分钟内获得全文求助全文

来源期刊

Clinical psychology & psychotherapy PSYCHOLOGY, CLINICAL-

CiteScore

6.30

自引率

5.60%

发文量

106

期刊介绍： Clinical Psychology & Psychotherapy aims to keep clinical psychologists and psychotherapists up to date with new developments in their fields. The Journal will provide an integrative impetus both between theory and practice and between different orientations within clinical psychology and psychotherapy. Clinical Psychology & Psychotherapy will be a forum in which practitioners can present their wealth of expertise and innovations in order to make these available to a wider audience. Equally, the Journal will contain reports from researchers who want to address a larger clinical audience with clinically relevant issues and clinically valid research.