Grief: 1 questionnaire and rating scale
Grief questionnaires are psychometric tools that assess the intensity of grief reactions and identify prolonged or complicated forms. They help distinguish an expected process from a course that calls for specific support.
GLI
Grief and Loss Inventory
This exploratory questionnaire describes the reactions that follow the death of a loved one: yearning for the person and thoughts focused on them, emotional pain, difficulty accepting the death, avoidance of reminders, loss of meaning and direction, and difficulty re-engaging with life. Its domains draw on the dimensions of prolonged grief disorder and on the dual process model to identify what is getting in the way of grieving and choose the focus of treatment.
Frequently asked questions
When is grief considered prolonged?
It is considered when the distress and the preoccupation with the loss remain intense and disabling beyond an expected timeframe, according to the criteria of current classifications. The scale helps identify these situations.
How do I tell grief from depression?
Their manifestations partly overlap, but grief remains centered on the loss and the deceased. The interview and complementary scales help clarify a possible co-occurring depressive episode.
Are these scales suitable for monitoring?
Yes. Repeated administration makes it possible to track how grief reactions change and to adjust the support to the trajectory observed.
Grief in clinical practice
Grief is a normal reaction to a loss, and its intensity usually decreases over time. In some people, the suffering persists and becomes entrenched, forming the picture of prolonged grief recognized in recent classifications.
Scales help assess the intensity of grief reactions and identify the criteria for prolonged grief, while distinguishing this picture from a co-occurring depression. They support referral and the monitoring of the support provided.
- Distinguish normal grief from prolonged grief.
- Differentiate grief from a depressive episode.
- Identify situations that require follow-up.