We aimed to investigate the bidirectional associations of repetitive thought (i.e., rumination, yearning) with individual (grief levels, depressive symptoms) and relational well-being in bereaved parents who lost their child during pregnancy, labor, or afterward.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFA minority of bereaved individuals develops severe, persistent, and disabling grief, termed "prolonged grief." The International Classification of Diseases, eleventh edition (ICD-11) and the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fifth edition, text revision (DSM-5-TR) include such grief reactions as prolonged grief disorder (PGD). Loneliness is often experienced by bereaved persons and can have severe health consequences.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInt J Clin Health Psychol
December 2024
Although child loss impairs well-being, its impact on behavioral exchanges between bereaved parents remains understudied. We compared bereaved and non-bereaved couples regarding affectionate touch levels, the role of affectionate touch in intimacy, and the association between partners' affectionate touch similarity and intimacy. Bereaved (228 couples, 27 individuals) and non-bereaved (258 couples, seven individuals) people participated in our seven-day diary study.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEur J Psychotraumatol
October 2024
Perceiving that society disregards grief after pregnancy loss (disenfranchised grief) elevates bereaved parents' psychological burden. In this research, we aimed to compare the disenfranchisement of pregnancy loss with four other loss types considering the bereaved's gender. We collected data from Turkish participants (= 1,280) using a 5 (loss type) x 2 (gender) between-subjects design with randomly assigned vignettes.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPast traumatic events negatively affect romantic relationships, yet their impact on affectionate touch, an important predictor of psychological and relational well-being, remains unknown. In two preregistered studies with nonclinical samples, we hypothesized that traumatic events are negatively associated with affectionate touch frequency for both the victim (i.e.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: During the perinatal period, women and their birth companions form expectations about childbirth. We aimed to examine whether a mismatch between birth expectations and experiences predict childbirth-related post-traumatic stress symptoms (CB-PTSS) for mothers and birth companions. We also explored the influence of the mismatch between mothers' and birth companions' expectations/experiences on CB-PTSS.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Insomnia symptoms are common following bereavement and may exacerbate severe and protracted grief reactions, such as prolonged grief disorder (PGD). However, typical trajectories of insomnia symptoms and risk factors for having a more chronic insomnia trajectory following bereavement are yet unknown.
Method: In the current investigation, 220 recently bereaved (≤6 months post-loss) participants, completed questionnaires assessing sociodemographic and loss-related characteristics, rumination, experiential avoidance and symptoms of (prolonged) grief and depression, on three time-points (6 months apart).
Prolonged grief disorder, characterized by severe, persistent and disabling grief, has recently been added to the DSM-5-TR and ICD-11. Treatment for prolonged grief symptoms shows limited effectiveness. It has been suggested that prolonged grief symptoms exacerbate insomnia symptoms, whereas insomnia symptoms, in turn, may fuel prolonged grief symptoms.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThis study examined socioeconomic disparities in changes in adolescent mental health between fall 2019 (pre-COVID-19), spring 2020 (initial coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) phase), and fall 2020 (prevailing COVID-19 phase). Using data from 1429 adolescents (M = 17.9) from tertiary vocational schools in the Netherlands with n = 386 participating in all three waves, linear and latent basis growth curve models were assessed and multigroup analyses conducted.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDo the reasons why we think about our memories and share them with others have implications for our romantic relationship quality? In the present series of studies (total N = 1,102), we aimed to answer this question by examining whether the self (e.g., creating a stable self-image), social (e.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDo partners' levels of self-control and forgiveness change over the course of marriage? Based on the idea that marriage may function as a training ground for these vital relationship abilities, we hypothesized that people increase their levels of self-control and forgiveness over time and that these developments take place simultaneously. We tested these predictions among 199 newlywed couples in the first 4 years of marriage, using a dyadic latent growth curves analysis. Confirming our hypotheses, results showed significant increases in self-control and forgiveness as well as a positive concurrent correlation between these variables.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Acquir Immune Defic Syndr
March 2019
Background: One mechanism through which social stigma of HIV affects health outcomes for people living with HIV (PLWH) is through internalization of stigma. However, this transformation of social stigma in the community into internalized stigma may not be of the same magnitude for all PLWH. We examined the moderating effects of 3 personality traits-fear of negative social evaluation, attachment-related anxiety, and dispositional resilience-in transforming perceived stigma in the community into internalized stigma.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIn three studies, it was investigated whether trait mindfulness is positively associated with partner acceptance, defined as the ability and willingness to accept the partner's imperfections, and whether partner acceptance explains the association between trait mindfulness and relationship satisfaction. Trait mindfulness, partner acceptance and relationship satisfaction were assessed in two MTurk samples ( = 190; = 140) and a sample of participants of a mindfulness-based stress reduction course ( = 118) and their partners (53 complete couples), using self-report measures. In all three samples, trait mindfulness was related to partner acceptance and in two out of three studies trait mindfulness was directly positively related to relationship satisfaction.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWe examined whether the relations of consistency between ideal standards and perceptions of a current romantic partner with partner acceptance and relationship satisfaction level off, or decelerate, above a threshold. We tested our hypothesis using a 3-year longitudinal data set collected from heterosexual newlywed couples. We used two indicators of consistency: pattern correspondence (within-person correlation between ideal standards and perceived partner ratings) and mean-level match (difference between ideal standards score and perceived partner score).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe present research focused on bereaved parents' perceived grief similarity, and aimed to investigate the concurrent and longitudinal effects of the perceptions that the partner has less, equal, or more grief intensity than oneself on relationship satisfaction. Participants of our longitudinal study were 229 heterosexual bereaved Dutch couples who completed questionnaires 6, 13, and 20 months after the loss of their child. Average age of participants was 40.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMany people engage in intrusive behaviors in close relationships. Existing research links intrusive behaviors to a lack of trust and an imbalance between self- and partner-interest. The authors tested the novel hypothesis that people need self-control to regulate intrusive behaviors.
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