Pandemic grief in El Salvador: factors that predict dysfunctional grief due to a COVID-19 death among Salvadoran adults

Lobos-Rivera M.E.; Flores-Monterrosa A.N.; Tejada-Rodríguez J.C.; Chacón-Andrade E.R.; Caycho-Rodríguez T.; Lee S.A.; Valencia P.D.; Carbajal-León C.; Vilca L.W.; Reyes-Bossio M.; Gallegos M. · Psicologia: Reflexao e Critica (2023) · DOI: 10.1186/s41155-023-00250-6

Resumen

Thousands of people have died of COVID-19 in El Salvador. However, little is known about the mental health of those who are mourning the loss of a loved one to COVID-19. Therefore, the objective of this study was to examine the dysfunctional grief associated with COVID-19 death among Salvadoran adults. A sample of 435 Salvadorans (M = 29 years; SD = 8.75) who lost a family member or loved one to COVID-19 completed a digital survey using the Google Forms platform, during April 2 and 28, 2022. The results revealed that 35.1% reported clinically elevated symptoms of dysfunctional grief and among those mourners, and 25.1% also exhibited clinical levels of coronavirus anxiety. A binary logistic regression revealed that predictor variables such as COVID-19 anxiety (p =.003), depression (p =.021), and COVID-19 obsession (p =.032) were significant (χ2 = 84.31; Nagelkerke R2 =.242) and predict a 24.2% chance of dysfunctional bereavement.

Instituciones: Universidad Peruana de Ciencias Aplicadas; Universidad Científica del Sur; Universidad Privada Norbert Wiener