The Question of who Participates in Bereavement Research and the Bereavement Risk Index

Widowed spouses who either participated or refused to participate in a longitudinal bereavement study were compared using the Bereavement Risk Index (BRI). Also investigated were the psychometric characteristics of the BRI. The total BRI had poor internal consistency (α = .50). A principle components analysis yielded one factor with adequate reliability (α = .74), composed of five items associated with stress and coping. Correlations of BRI scores and selected items with measures of depression and stress at three and six months postmortem suggest that they may be more predictive of immediate than of longer-term bereavement adjustment. On the BRI, refusers scored significantly higher than participants on only two items, suggesting that they exercised less control over their emotionality at the time of their loss, and that they were less likely to be working outside their homes. Refusers were also significantly older than participants. Findings were viewed as suggesting little substantive difference between participants and nonparticipants in bereavement research.