Pandemic Grief and Suicidal Ideation in Latin American Countries: A Network Analysis

Caycho-Rodríguez T.; Baños-Chaparro J.; Ventura-León J.; Lee S.A.; Vilca L.W.; Carbajal-León C.; Yupanqui-Lorenzo D.E.; Valencia P.D.; Reyes-Bossio M.; Oré-Kovacs N.; Rojas-Jara C.; Gallegos M.; Polanco-Carrasco R.; Cervigni M.; Martino P.; Lobos-Rivera M.E.; Moreta-Herrera R.; Palacios Segura D.A.; Samaniego-Pinho A.; Buschiazzo Figares A.; Puerta-Cortés D.X.; Camargo A.; Torales J.; Monge Blanco J.A.; González P.; Smith-Castro V.; Petzold-Rodriguez O.; Calderón R.; Matute Rivera W.Y.; Ferrufino-Borja D.; Muñoz-del-Carpio-Toia A.; Palacios J.; Burgos-Videla C.; Florez León A.M.E.; Vergara I.; Vega D.; Schulmeyer M.K.; Urrutia Rios H.T.; Lira Lira A.E.; Barria-Asenjo N.A.; Ayala-Colqui J.; Hualparuca-Olivera L. · Psychological Reports (2026) · DOI: 10.1177/00332941241231209

Resumen

This study aimed to characterize the network structure of pandemic grief symptoms and suicidal ideation in 2174 people from eight Latin American countries. Pandemic grief and suicidal ideation were measured using the Pandemic Grief Scale and a single item, respectively. Network analysis provides an in-depth characterization of symptom-symptom interactions within mental disorders. The results indicated that, “desire to die,” “apathy” and “absence of sense of life” are the most central symptoms in a pandemic grief symptom network; therefore, these symptoms could be focal elements for preventive and treatment efforts. Suicidal ideation, the wish to die, and the absence of meaning in life had the strongest relationship. In general, the network structure did not differ among the participating countries. It identifies specific symptoms within the network that may increase the likelihood of their co-occurrence and is useful at the therapeutic level. © The Author(s) 2024

Instituciones: Universidad Peruana de Ciencias Aplicadas; Universidad Científica del Sur; Universidad Tecnológica del Perú; Universidad Continental; Universidad Católica de Santa María; Universidad Privada Norbert Wiener; Universidad Privada del Norte; Universidad de Ciencias y Humanidades