Five-factor model in bereaved adults with and without complicated grief

Death Stud. 2019;43(3):204-209. doi: 10.1080/07481187.2018.1446059. Epub 2018 May 8.

Abstract

Knowledge about what psychological characteristics underlie complicated grief (CG) is limited. The current study examined the five-factor personality traits in 81 bereaved adults with (n = 51) and without (n = 30) CG. A trained doctoral-level clinician evaluated participants using a structured, diagnostic psychiatric interview, and they completed self-report measures of grief and personality. A multiple regression model indicated that higher levels of neuroticism were associated with greater CG symptom severity, implicating neuroticism in the development of CG. Future prospective studies confirming it as a risk factor for the development of CG are warranted.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Aged
  • Female
  • Grief*
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Mental Disorders / physiopathology*
  • Middle Aged
  • Neuroticism*
  • Personality / physiology*
  • Severity of Illness Index