Self-blame, other blame, and desire for revenge: Factors in recovery from bereavement

Abstract

Abstract Relationships among cause of death, attributional processes, and self-reported recovery from bereavement were examined in a sample of 200 mourners People who were grieving death from natural causes (illnesses) realized better recoveries than did those who were grieving deaths from unnatural causes (murders, suicides., or accidents). Self-blame, other blame, and dual blame (simultaneous self-blame and other blame) were more frequent when the death was from unnatural cause, with dual blame, and attributional complexity, being the most prevalent form of blame in they circumstances Self-blame was correlated with poorer recoveries, irrespective of the cause of death, while the connection between other blame and recovery was mediated by both the cause of death and the desire for revenge. In unnatural deaths, mourners who blamed others and thought about or sought revenge reported less adequate adjustment than did those who blamed others but did not consider revenge. Finding are reviewed in terms of learned helplessness and grief theory