Mediating Role of Coping Strategies on the Symptoms of Complicated Grief and Psychological Well-Being during COVID-19 Pandemic
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Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic altered the way people live. For safety reasons, the government of the Philippines imposed health guidelines that affected the grieving process of Filipinos, resulting in complicated bereavement; yet there is little research examining potential protective factors for grieving Filipinos. This study investigated the mediating role of coping strategies between complicated grief and psychological wellbeing among 200 bereaved Filipinos aged 18 to 67. The researchers employed random sampling to administer modified versions of the Inventory of Complicated Grief, Coping Strategies Scale, and Ryff's Psychological Well-being questionnaires. It was determined that the degree of complicated grief was low, the level of coping strategies was high, and coping mechanisms were frequently employed. The findings indicated that coping strategies fully mediated the relationship between symptoms of complicated grief and psychological well-being (β =-0.493, t=2.16, p=0.03). Implications and recommendations were discussed.
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