Early Maladaptive Schemas, Meaning Making, and Complicated Grief Symptoms After Bereavement

Early maladaptive schemas (EMSs) have been proposed as a risk factor for developing complicated grief (CG)-a severe and chronic form of grieving characterized by a host of problematic cognitive, behavioral, and emotional symptoms. Furthermore, it has been hypothesized that the link between EMSs and CG may be largely explained by one's ability to make meaning of the loss by integrating the experience into some broader understanding of oneself and the world. The present study tested these hypotheses among a sample of 156 bereaved young adults who completed measures of EMSs, meaning made of loss, and CG. Findings suggested that negative EMSs are associated with elevated CG symptoms and greater difficulties integrating the loss. In addition, when all variables were examined simultaneously in a path analysis, those with more negative EMSs in the rejection and disconnection domain were found to have greater difficulty finding adaptive ways of making meaning of the loss and in turn experienced more severe CG. These findings underscore the importance of attending to ingrained schemas and negative meanings made of loss when interacting clinically with bereaved individuals.