Spousal Bereavement in Late Life

Rutgers University, New Jersey. Text focuses on the challenges and resources of older widows and widowers. Topics include a comparison of the bereavement experiences of men and women, methodological advice for studying the bereavement process, new theoretical perspectives on grief, critiques for current therapies and practices, and more. For social workers and practitioners.

Foreword

xvii

Margaret S. Stroebe

Preface

xix

Introduction: A History of the Changing Lives of Older

xxi

Couples Study

Randolph M. Nesse, Camille B. Wortman, and James S. House

Study Origins

xxi

The Americans' Changing Lives (ACL) Study

xxiii

The Changing Lives of Older Couples (CLOC) Study

xxv

The Primary Data Analysis

xxviii

Part I. Studying Bereavement: Methodological Innovations and Contextual Influences

1. Understanding Late Life Widowhood: New Directions in Research, Theory, and Practice

3

(16)

Deborah Carr, Camille B. Wortman, and Randolph M. Nesse

Aims of the Volume

4

(2)

Chapter Summaries

6

(13)

2. Methodological Issues in Studying Late Life Bereavement

19

(30)

Deborah Carr

Research Design and Sample Issues

20

(6)

Importance of Multiple Outcomes in Bereavement Research

26

(4)

Unexplored Pathways: Identifying the "Black Box" of Widowhood

30

(3)

The Changing Lives of Older Couples (CLOC) Study

33

(16)

3. How Older Americans Die Today: Implications for Surviving Spouses

49

(32)

Deborah Carr, Camille B. Wortman, and Karin Wolff

How Americans Die: A Brief History of Mortality

49

(3)

Death Timing and Bereaved Spouses' Well-being

52

(3)

The Strains of the Dying Process

55

(6)

Living Arrangements and Medical Care at the End of Life

61

(7)

Conclusion and Outlook

68

(13)

Part II. Personal Consequences of Spousal Loss

4. Psychological Consequences of Spousal Loss Among Older Adults: Understanding the Diversity of Responses

81

(36)

Karin Wolff and Camille B. Wortman

Late Life Spousal Loss

82

(3)

Assumptions Guiding Prior Research

85

(5)

Variability in Response to Conjugal Loss: The Role of Risk Factors

90

(5)

Gender Differences

95

(5)

Remarriage

100

(4)

Conclusions and Implications

104

(13)

5. A Closer Look at Health and Widowhood: Do Health Behaviors Change After the Loss of a Spouse?

117

(26)

Amy Mehraban Pienta and Melissa M. Franks

Does Health Decline After Spousal Loss?

118

(8)

Data and Methods

126

(1)

Measurement of Dependent Variables

126

(2)

Independent Variables

128

(1)

Analysis

128

(1)

Results

129

(7)

Conclusion

136

(7)

6. Interpersonal and Spiritual Connections among Bereaved Older Adults

143

(24)

Stephanie L. Brown, James S. House, and Dylan M. Smith

Coping With Loss: The Role of Interpersonal and Spiritual Connections

144

(6)

Further Evidence From the CLOC Project

150

(11)

Discussion and Conclusion

161

(6)

7. Economic and Practical Adjustments to Late Life Spousal Loss

167

(28)

Rebecca L. Utz

Marital Transitions: From Single to Married to Single Again

167

(4)

The Dual Process Model of Coping

171

(1)

The Changing Lives of Older Couples Study

172

(8)

The Individual Experience of Bereavement

180

(4)

Revising Our Assumptions About Bereavement

184

(3)

Conclusion

187

(8)

Part III. New Perspectives on Grief and Bereavement

8. Evolutionary Framework for Understanding Grief

195

(32)

Randolph M. Nesse

Attachment Theory

199

(3)

Relationship Loss

202

(1)

John Archer's Assessment

203

(2)

Is Grief a Specialized Kind of Sadness?

205

(3)

Assessing Possible Evolutionary Explanations of Grief

208

(10)

Implications for Research

218

(9)

9. Widowhood, Grief and the Quest for Meaning: A Narrative Perspective on Resilience

227

Robert A. Neimeyer

The Narrative Dimension of Human Life

228

(2)

Narrating the Self: From Cognitive Science to Clinical Significance

230

(1)

Grief and Bereavement in Narrative Perspective

231

(3)

Pathways Through Bereavement

234

(8)

Research and Clinical Implications

242

(4)

Conclusion

246

(9)

Part IV. Implications For Practice, Policy, and Future Research

10. Clinical Interventions with the Bereaved: What Clinicians and Counselors Can Learn from the Changing Lives of Older Couples Study

255

(24)

Anthony D. Mancini, David L. Pressman, and George A. Bonanno

Evidence For the Efficacy of Clinical Interventions with the Bereaved

256

(2)

Common Clinical Assumptions About Bereavement

258

(3)

Basic Grief Outcome Trajectories

261

(1)

Bereavement in Older Adults

262

(2)

Findings From the Changing Lives of Older Couples Study: Identifying the Varieties of Grief Reaction

264

(3)

Clinical Implications of the Changing Lives of Older Couples Findings

267

(5)

Conclusion

272

(7)

11. Implications for Public Policies and Social Services: What Social Workers and Other Gerontology Practioners Can Learn from the Changing Lives of Older Couples Study

279

(34)

Virginia E. Richardson

Clinical Interventions and Public Policies

281

(14)

Critique of Interventions and Public Policies

295

(1)

Findings From the Changing Lives of Older Couples Study

296

(8)

Implications for Education and Training

304

(9)

12. The Future of Late Life Spousal Bereavement

313

(11)

Deborah Carr

Diversity in the Older Population

314

(4)

Changing Demographic and Economic Contexts

318

(3)

Conclusion

321

(3)

Index

324

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Spousal Bereavement in Late Life

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