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SAGE Publications, OMEGA - Journal of Death and Dying, 1(74), p. 80-95, 2016

DOI: 10.1177/0030222815598046

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Preliminary Evaluation of a Prolonged Grief Questionnaire for Adolescents

Journal article published in 2016 by Johanna Unterhitzenberger ORCID, Rita Rosner
This paper is made freely available by the publisher.
This paper is made freely available by the publisher.

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Abstract

Currently, there is no established measure to assess prolonged grief in adolescents. A new measure was designed based on the Extended Grief Inventory, the Inventory of Complicated Grief—Revised for Children, and the Inventory of Prolonged Grief for Children/Adolescents. We investigated the psychometric properties of the Prolonged Grief Questionnaire for Adolescents in a sample of 69 14- to 18-year-old parentally bereaved adolescents living in rural Rwanda. Additionally, we obtained sociodemographic information and assessed loss experiences and depressive symptoms. A principal component analysis revealed item loadings on two factors, which we named separation distress and secondary emotions. Internal consistency in this first evaluation was high (α = .94), and the criterion validity was satisfying. A sensitivity of 85.3% and a specificity of 85.9% were found. The small sample size is a major limitation. However, the Prolonged Grief Questionnaire for Adolescents may be a promising tool for assessing prolonged grief symptoms in adolescents.