Widow's Grief: The Impact of Age and Mode of Death

Abstract

Two variables (age and mode of death) were tested to discover if they could predict the intensity of the grief reaction. It was hypothesized that widows who experienced anticipatory grief would resolve the bereavement crisis in an easier manner than those experiencing the sudden death of a mate, and that younger widows would experience the effects of acute grief to a greater degree than older widows. Information was obtained by a questionnaire from eighty widows bereaved six to nine months. They were divided into three age groups (young, middle, old) and two mode of death groups (sudden death and prolonged death). It was concluded that anticipatory grief is a mitigating influence on post-mortem grief for the young bereaved widow. It appears, however, that age is a more important factor than mode of death in relating to the intensity of the grief reaction. The restlessness symptom was found to be significantly higher in young widows and the irritability symptom showed an interaction effect-high for young (sudden) and middle (prolonged) widows.