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although attachment theory has become one of the primary paradigms for understanding bereavement adaptation, there has been surprisingly little empirical work on this topic. two studies investigated the role of attachment in coping with the loss of a loved one. Study 1 examined the unique contribution of attachment anxiety and avoidance in prolonged grief symptomatology (PGS) in a sample of 656 recently bereaved young adults. When accounting for demographic factors (age, ethnicity, gender) and loss-related circumstances (relationship to deceased, violent versus natural loss), higher levels of attachment-related anxiety were associated with more PGS but avoidance failed to produce a unique effect. Study 2 investigated the role of attachment insecurities in the context of violent death bereavement. Participants were grouped by those who experienced a violent loss in the past two years (accident, suicide, homicide; n = 191) and a matched control group who had not experienced a loss (n = 191). individuals with higher levels of attachment anxiety reported worse physical and mental health symptoms. attachment avoidance was a salient predictor of poor post-bereavement functioning for violent loss survivors but avoidant attachment was not as relevant for nonbereaved persons. results of the second study support the worrisome role of attachment anxiety in the context of coping with bereavement, while also suggesting detrimental effects for avoidance in extreme cases of loss.

Abstract.Background: Gaze and eye contact is a critical aspect of social interaction. Patients with behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD) may exhibit abnormally prolonged stare toward human faces. Objective: To study characteristics of social gaze in patients with bvFTD compared to age and education matched-patients with early-onset Alzheimer's disease (eAD) and healthy controls (HC). Method: Fifty picture stimuli were presented to each participant (bvFTD = 12, eAD = 18, HC = 13). Each stimuli contained two properties: face (facial versus non-facial) and valence (positive, negative, and neutral). The "facial" stimuli contained human faces. The participants Visual Fixation Time (VFT) was measured for each picture stimuli of interest (per facial expressions on the Facial Action Coding System). A linear mixed-effects regression model with participant-level of random effects was used to compare VFTs between groups. Results: The patients with bvFTD showed significantly prolonged VFTs to faces than the patients with eAD and the HC, regardless of valence (all p < 0.01). There were no differences in VFTs for non-facial stimuli between patients with bvFTD and eAD. However, patients with bvFTD and eAD had significantly prolonged VFTs to negative non-facial stimuli than the HC (p = 0.006 and 0.019, respectively). Conclusion: Patients with bvFTD exhibited a prolonged stare toward human faces. This prolonged visual facial grasp may contribute to the disturbed social interactions of patients with bvFTD and can help distinguish them from those with Alzheimer's disease and other conditions. Additionally, both dementia groups tended to stare at negative stimuli whether faces or non-faces.

Purpose is understood to reflect young people’s stable and generalized commitments to accomplish meaningful activity and contribute productively to society. Religion has been linked with purpose; however, the nature of this relationship is not well understood. Given that purpose and religion involve beliefs and devotion, the current study examined fidelity as a means of understanding this relationship in a group of religiously and culturally diverse youth from around the world. The participants were 30 adolescents aged 12-21 (M = 17.73 years) nominated for living with profound spirituality in their community. Consensual qualitative research (CQR) strategies were used. Analysis revealed that 29 of the participants reported a sense of purpose and all 30 participants described some aspect of fidelity that involved (a) beliefs, (b) values, (c) morals, and (d) resolute commitment. These findings highlight the centrality of fidelity as a link between religion and purpose among diverse youth. Future directions for research and practice are discussed.

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