Does the DSM-5 grief disorder apply to owners of deceased pets? A psychometric study of impairment during pet loss

• Published in: Psychiatry research Vol. 285; p. 112800
• Main Author: Lee, Sherman A.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Ireland Elsevier B.V 01-03-2020
• Subjects: Factor analysis; Grief; Persistent complex bereavement disorder; Pet loss; Persistent complex bereavement disorder; Grief; Factor analysis; Pet loss
• ISSN: 0165-1781; 1872-7123
• DOI: 10.1016/j.psychres.2020.112800

•Grief associated with pet loss is prevalent.•DSM-5 grief disorder construct does apply to owners of deceased pets.•Persistent complex bereavement disorder symptoms structure is equivalent across gender.
This study aimed to validate the DSM-5 grief disorder construct to owners of deceased pets using a sample of 395 adults who were impaired during bereavement. Confirmatory factor analyzes indicated that the grief symptoms cohered into the symptom clusters proposed by the DSM-5, which were driven by a higher-order factor and were equivalent across gender. Grief disordered individuals exhibited more depression, loneliness, sleep difficulties, negative religious coping, and alcohol/drug coping compared to the rest of the sample. These findings support the application of the DSM-5 model of grief to owners of deceased pets.