Assessing Adults' Difficulty in Coping with Funerals

Datos Bibliográficos

ID13628201
AutoresBert Hayslip (0000-0002-7774-5823, University of North Texas, autor de correspondencia), Suzanne K Booher (University of North Texas), Michael T Scoles (University of Central Arkansas), Charles A Guarnaccia (0000-0001-6888-9596, University of North Texas)
Año2007
Volumen55
Número2
Páginas93-115
Fecha de publicación2007-07-02
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessSí
TipoARTICLE
RevistaOMEGA - Journal of Death and Dying (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 0030-2228 • E-ISSN: 1541-3764
EditorialSAGE Publishing (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.2190/om.55.2.a
PMID17944309
OpenAlexW1977558776
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas8
Referencias citadas42

The death of a loved one requires many adults to make decisions about a variety of details regarding funeral arrangements. Based upon data collected from 348 adults (M age = 34.21) who had attended the funeral of a loved one within the last year, a scale consisting of 50 items regarding the difficulties each had experienced with regard to events prior to, during, and after the funeral, was developed. Cronbach's Alpha coefficient for this measure of difficulty was .96. Principal components analysis of these data indicated that difficulty in coping with funerals could be understood in light of six factors explaining 56% of the common variance among relationships between items: 1) protocol/mechanics of the funeral; 2) general personal and interpersonal difficulties related to the death/funeral; 3) trust in the funeral industry; 4) concerns regarding the cemetery; 5) issues pertaining to grief; and 6) post-funeral personal responsibilities. With regard to both overall difficulty and the above six factors, older adults experienced fewer difficulties, as did those who more actively participated in funeral rituals. In contrast, those who reported more personal and bereavement-related distress experienced more difficulties. Findings of the current study have value both in identifying persons for whom funerals may undermine bereavement adjustment and in identifying appropriate intervention and aftercare services for such individuals

Coping (psychology · Cronbach's alpha · Distress · Funeral Rites · Grief · Interpersonal communication · Psychiatry · Psychometrics · Clinical Psychology · Death Anxiety and Social Exclusion · Grief, Bereavement, and Mental Health · Palliative Care and End-of-Life Issues · Psychology · Social Psychology