The Association of Co-Rumination with Prolonged Grief and Relationship Satisfaction Among Bereaved Adults: A Gender-Moderated Analysis

Abstract

This study examined the role of co-rumination and its components, co-brooding and co-reflection, in prolonged grief severity and relationship satisfaction among bereaved adults, with a focus on gender as a moderating variable. A cross-sectional, correlational design was used with a sample of 82 bereaved adults (72% women; age range = 18–65+, M = 28.4) who had experienced a significant loss within the past three years. Participants completed measures of co-rumination, co-brooding, co-reflection, rumination (brooding and reflection), prolonged grief, and relationship satisfaction. Co-rumination significantly predicted higher prolonged grief severity (β = .53, p < .001). Gender did not moderate the relationship between co-rumination and prolonged grief severity, nor between co-rumination and relationship satisfaction. In a multiple regression analysis, co-brooding emerged as the strongest unique predictor of prolonged grief (β = .43, p < .001), while co-rumination, brooding, co-reflection, and reflection were not significant. These findings suggest that co-brooding may be particularly maladaptive in the context of prolonged grief and underscore the need for further investigation.