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Psychological adjustment, relationship satisfaction, and communication in bereaved parents using the Bowen Family Systems Theory

Bowes, Michelle J
http://orcid.org/0000-0001-6318-2954
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=akron1563974689927106

Abstract Details

2019, Doctor of Education, University of Akron, Marriage and Family Counseling/Therapy.
This quantitative study investigated the role of communication on grief reaction, guilt, and relationship satisfaction in bereaved couples after the death of a child to gain a better understanding of the relationship between these variables. It also explored parental gender and time since death. Fifty-four couples were recruited through newsletters, support groups, and forums. Participants were directed to Qualtrics to fill out the following instruments: demographic questionnaire, the Attitudes towards Emotional Expression Scale to measure communication, the Revised Grief Experience Inventory to measure grief reaction, the Guilt subscale of the Grief Experience Questionnaire to measure guilt, and the Marital Satisfaction Inventory-Revised to measure relationship satisfaction. Bowen family systems theory (BFST) was used as the guiding theoretical lens. There were three parametric measures used in this study: independent two-sample t-test, the Actor Partner Interdependence Model (APIM), and hierarchical regression. For the independent t-test, all the variables showed sufficient evidence at the 5% significance level of a significant difference in the average total scores. For communication males scored significantly higher than females and for grief reaction, guilt, and relationship satisfaction females scored significantly higher than males. The APIM found a statistically significant actor effect for a woman’s communication on her own grief reaction. For the hierarchical regression, the regression results indicated that this overall model did significantly predict female grief reaction. Time since death proved a significant predictor of female grief reaction. A discussion of the findings, limitations of the study, research and clinical implications, and direction for future research are addressed.
Karin Jordan, Ph.D. (Advisor)
Heather Katafiasz, Ph.D. (Committee Member)
Harvey Sterns, Ph.D. (Committee Member)
David Tefteller, Ph.D. (Committee Member)
Wondimu Ahmed, Ph.D. (Committee Member)
222 p.
Counseling Education
grief reaction, guilt, relationship satisfaction, communication, bereaved parents, Bowen Family Systems Theory

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Bowes, M. J. (2019). Psychological adjustment, relationship satisfaction, and communication in bereaved parents using the Bowen Family Systems Theory [Doctoral dissertation, University of Akron]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=akron1563974689927106

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Bowes, Michelle. Psychological adjustment, relationship satisfaction, and communication in bereaved parents using the Bowen Family Systems Theory. 2019. University of Akron, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=akron1563974689927106.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Bowes, Michelle. "Psychological adjustment, relationship satisfaction, and communication in bereaved parents using the Bowen Family Systems Theory." Doctoral dissertation, University of Akron, 2019. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=akron1563974689927106

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

akron1563974689927106
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This open access ETD is published by University of Akron and OhioLINK.