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How Grief, Funerals, and Poverty Affect Bereaved Health, Productivity, and Medical Dependence in Japan

Bibliographic Data

ID13627935
AuthorsCarl Becker (0000-0002-4519-8837, Policy Science Unit, Kyoto University, Japan, corresponding author), Yozo Taniyama (Tohoku University), Megumi Kondo-Arita (Nakayama International Center for Medical Cooperation, Osaka Medical College, Japan), Megumi Kondo‐Arita (0009-0002-1860-7727, Osaka Medical and Pharmaceutical University), Shinya Yamada (0000-0001-5726-3926, National Museum of Japanese History), Kayoko Yamamoto (0000-0002-1530-8484, Tenri Health Care University)
Year2020
Volume85
Issue3
Pages669-689
Publication date2020-08-25
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueOMEGA - Journal of Death and Dying (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0030-2228 • E-ISSN: 1541-3764
PublisherSAGE Publishing (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1177/0030222820947573
PMID32842880
OpenAlexW3081382588
LanguageEN
Citations received11
References cited31

Grief has been shown to weaken bereaved persons' health, but measurements of their lost time and medical expense remain rare. Funerals traditionally managed and assuaged grief through ritual expression, approval, and social support. Research suggests that satisfying funeral participation reduces grief, while poverty exacerbates it. We hypothesized that: (1) psycho-physical symptoms of grief, (2) abbreviation/dissatisfaction in the funeral, and (3) poverty, correlate with decreased productivity and increased medical and social services use. We collected data from 165 mourning families about their grief, funerals, and subsequent medical conditions. (1) Deeper grief after bereavement in Japan correlated with more physical problems, more down time, and more medical dependency. (2) Low satisfaction with funerals correlated with higher hospital, pharmacy, and counseling costs. (3) Low income families lost more time, while declining incomes showed increased pharmaceutical costs. This suggests that satisfying funerals and income safeguards may reduce costs of low productivity and increased public services dependency

Affect (linguistics · Economic growth · Economics · Grief · Poverty · Productivity · Psychiatry · Clinical Psychology · Grief, Bereavement, and Mental Health · Health disparities and outcomes · Intergenerational Family Dynamics and Caregiving · Medicine · Nursing · Pharmacy · Psychology

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Unique citing works11
Citations per year2,2
Citation span2021 - 2026 (6)
Citation velocitycurrent
Highly citedNo
Citation typesNeutral: 10
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