The grief process and job loss: A cross‐sectional study

Abstract

This study assessed the applicability of the grief process to job loss. A pilot study of 10 unemployed men was used to establish a structured interview, and its content analysis, based on a description of the grief process derived from studies of bereavement. Other measures assessed the degree of attachment to the former job. The main study involved 60 men who had lost their jobs during the previous eight years. Individual grief items were found in some of these people, varying in frequency from 10 to 80 per cent. Principal components analysis revealed a general grief component, representing most of the specific items. Twenty-seven per cent of the sample fulfilled a criterion for a clear grief-like response. An overall grief score based on the interview answers was significantly correlated with three different measures of job attachment, and also with questionnaire measures of depression and anxiety. These measures were unrelated to the length of time since job loss, apparently providing no support for stage theories or for more general assumptions of adaptation. However, the cross-sectional nature of the sample complicates this conclusion.

Complicated grief associated with Hurricane Katrina

“…[31] Although this proposal stipulates that these symptoms occur following the loss of a loved one, evidence exists that grief symptoms also often occur after non-bereavement losses, such as job loss, [32] loss of a home, [33] loss of the ability to function, [34,35] receiving a diagnosis of a fatal disease, [36–38] and caring for a loved one with dementia. [39,40] Grief symptoms associated with these non-bereavement losses appear to be similar to those associated with bereavement.…”

A Preliminary Investigation of Factors Associated With Job Loss Grief

“…A review of the limited empirical literature available suggests that diverse factors may be related to the variability in former workers' responses to involuntary job loss. Attachment to the former job (Archer & Rhodes, 1993), job congruence and duration (Holland, 1985), and length of time since the loss (Leana & Feldman, 1994) may affect responses to job loss. Other factors include age (Wooten, Sulzer, & Cornwell, 1994), gender (Eby & Buch, 1995), social support (Caplan, Vinokur, Price, & van Ryn, 1989;Leana & Feldman, 1994;Turner et al, 1991), depen-dents, financial resources (Leana & Feldman, 1994;Turner et aI., 1991), length of notice (Kinicki, Bracker, Kreitner, Lockwood, & Lemak, 1987), skill level (Besl & Kale, 1996), and perceived employment prospects (Gottfredson & Holland, 1990).…”

Unemployment, Trust in Government, and Satisfaction with Democracy: An Empirical Investigation

“…Negative experiences with such lower level institutions (e.g., an employment office) may spill over into one's overall evaluation of political institutions. Unemployment is also linked to various other negative outcomes: it is presumed to lead to a loss of identity and self-esteem, to a feeling of marginalization, or to decreased life satisfaction, optimism, personal efficacy, and political participation and to increased stress, anxiety about the future, and depression (Ahn et al 2004;Archer and Rhodes 1993;Chabanet 2007;Goldsmith, Veum, and Darity 1996;Laurence 2015;Leana and Feldman 1992;Linn et al 1985;Rantakeisu, Starrin, and Hagquist 1997;Scott and Acock 1979;Waters 2007;Winkelmann and Winkelmann 1998;Zawadzki and Lazarsfeld 1935:235). These outcomes in turn may affect political evaluations such as trust in government and satisfaction with democracy.…”