Researchers from five countries, including Turkey, collaborated on a multi-center study to validate the diagnostic criteria for Prolonged Grief Disorder at an international level. Researchers from Üsküdar Üniversitesi represented Turkey. Assoc. Prof. Dr. Asil Özdoğru, a faculty member in the Psychology Department and one of the article's authors, stated, “This international measurement tool can be considered a useful instrument for researchers and experts to better understand and measure the grieving process in an intercultural context.”
Prolonged Grief Disorder is a new psychological disorder added to the latest updates of the World Health Organization’s International Classification of Diseases System and the American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. Individuals experiencing this disorder exhibit intense emotional pain, various grief reactions, and, in addition, persistent and pervasive longing and mental preoccupation with the deceased person for at least six months after the loss.
Researchers from five countries, including Turkey, collaborated on a multi-center study to validate the diagnostic criteria for Prolonged Grief Disorder at an international level. In the study, where researchers from Üsküdar Üniversitesi represented Turkey, 31 researchers from 24 universities conducted an online survey with 287 participants from Turkey and a total of 1,393 participants.
The study involved those who lost a loved one between 6 months and 10 years ago
As part of the ethically approved study, participants responded to a series of psychological measurement tools, along with questions containing information about themselves and the deceased person. Care was taken to ensure that the bereaved person had lost a family member or friend between 6 months and 10 years prior. Among the measurement tools were the International Prolonged Grief Disorder Scale, adapted from English to Turkish in five steps, as well as the Prolonged Grief Scale, Somatic Symptom Scale, Patient Health Questionnaire, Generalized Anxiety Disorder Test, and International Trauma Questionnaire.
The research findings were published in the April issue of the internationally respected journal, Journal of Affective Disorders, in an article titled 'Measurement and Assessment of Grief in a Large International Sample.'
Findings indicate the International Prolonged Grief Disorder Scale is consistent and reliable
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Asil Özdoğru, a faculty member in the Psychology Department at Üsküdar Üniversitesi and one of the article's authors, shared the following information about the research:
“We conducted the study in collaboration with the International Trauma Consortium and Psi Chi Honor Society, coordinated by Psk. Beyzanur Yalçın, a graduate of our English Psychology Department, with the support of young researchers in our research group, and primarily with the participation of our students. Data was collected in Turkey, the United States, the Greek Cypriot Administration, Iran, and Greece between August 2019 and June 2020. When the collected data was examined, it was observed that cases of possible disorder were more prevalent in the Cyprus and Greece groups compared to the US, Iran, and Turkey groups. These and other findings in the study indicate that the 33-item International Prolonged Grief Disorder Scale is internally consistent, sensitive to cultural differences, and psychometrically reliable and valid as a measurement tool. This self-report scale, developed according to new criteria, can currently be administered in nine languages, including Turkish. This international measurement tool can be considered a useful instrument for researchers and experts to better understand and measure the grieving process in an intercultural context.”