Assessment, Grief Brief
Assessment, Grief Brief
Assessment, Grief Brief
1. How much are you having trouble accepting the death of ________________ ?
Not at all ……………………………………… 0
Somewhat ……………………………………. 1
A lot ……………………………………………. 2
2. How much does your grief (sadness and longing) interfere with your life?
Not at all ……………………………………… 0
Somewhat ……………………………………. 1
A lot ……………………………………………. 2
3. How much are you having images or thoughts of ________________ when s/he died
or other images or thoughts about ________________ that really bother you?
Not at all ……………………………………… 0
Somewhat ……………………………………. 1
A lot ……………………………………………. 2
4. Are there things you used to do when ________________ was alive that you don’t feel
comfortable doing anymore, that you avoid? Like going somewhere you went with
him/her, or doing things you used to enjoy together? Or avoiding looking at pictures or
talking about ________________ ? How much are you avoiding these things?
Not at all ……………………………………… 0
Somewhat ……………………………………. 1
A lot ……………………………………………. 2
5. How much are you feeling cut off or distant from other people since ________________
died, even people you used to be close to like family or friends?
Not at all ……………………………………… 0
Somewhat ……………………………………. 1
A lot ……………………………………………. 2
total score =
Ito, M., et al. (2012). "Brief measure for screening complicated grief:
reliability and discriminant validity." PLoS ONE 7(2): e31209.
If someone scores 4 or more on the Brief Grief Questionnaire, it is recommended
that they be assessed further with the full 19 item Inventory of Complicated Grief
Ito, M., et al. (2012). "Brief measure for screening complicated grief: reliability and discriminant
validity." PLoS ONE 7(2): e31209. (Available in free full text) BACKGROUND: Complicated grief,
which is often under-recognized and under-treated, can lead to substantial impairment in
functioning. The Brief Grief Questionnaire (BGQ) is a 5-item self-report or interview instrument
for screening complicated grief. Although investigations with help-seeking samples suggest that
the BGQ is valid and reliable, it has not been validated in a broader population. METHODOL-
OGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: A questionnaire was mailed to a randomly selected sample (n =
5000) residing in one of 4 areas of Japan. The BCQ was examined for responders who were
bereaved more than 6 months and less than 10 years (n = 915). Non-specific psychological
distress was assessed with the K6 screening scale. Multiple group confirmatory factor analysis
supported a uni-dimensional factor structure and the invariance of parameters across gender
and age. Cronbach's alpha was sufficiently high (alpha = .75) to confirm internal consistency.
Average Variance Extracted (0.39) was higher than the shared covariance (0.14) between BGQ
and K6, suggesting discriminant validity. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study support the
reliability and validity of the BGQ in the Japanese population. Future studies should examine
predictive validity by using structured interviews or more detailed scales for complicated grief.