Attachment styles, continuing bonds, and grief following companion animal death

Title
Attachment styles, continuing bonds, and grief following companion animal death
Publication Date
2024
Author(s)
Lykins, Amy D
( author )
OrcID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2930-3964
Email: alykins@une.edu.au
UNE Id une-id:alykins
McGreevy, Paul D
( author )
OrcID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7220-8378
Email: pmcgree2@une.edu.au
UNE Id une-id:pmcgree2
Bennett, Bindi
Paul, Nicola K
( author )
OrcID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8423-8742
Email: npaul4@myune.edu.au
UNE Id une-id:npaul5
Gotsis, Nick
Type of document
Journal Article
Language
en
Entity Type
Publication
Publisher
Routledge
Place of publication
United States of America
DOI
10.1080/07481187.2023.2265868
UNE publication id
une:1959.11/58281
Abstract

The death of a companion animal can cause severe grief, yet previous research investigating factors predicting grief has been hampered by limitations. We explored how attachment styles, continuing bonds, and time since loss interacted to predict grief severity in a large sample of individuals grieving the loss of a variety of companion animals. Participants (n = 496) aged between18 and 79 years (Mage = 41.60, SD = 13.62) who had lost a companion animal in the previous three years completed a continuing bonds questionnaire, and animal-oriented assessments of grief and attachment styles online. After controlling for time since loss, higher attachment anxiety predicted more severe grief, a relationship partially moderated by continuing bonds, whereas attachment avoidance predicted less severe grief irrespective of continuing bonds. We recommend reconsideration of the non-human animal exclusion in prolonged grief disorder, and suggest that bereavement supports embrace targeted approaches that consider attachment styles.

Link
Citation
Death Studies, 48(7), p. 698-705
ISSN
1091-7683
0748-1187
Start page
698
End page
705
Rights
Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International

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