The moderating roles of social support and spirituality in the relationship between complicated grief and quality of life among women who have experienced pregnancy loss

Kurzfassung/Abstract

Background:
It is widely known that losing a baby is a stressful experience in a woman’s life. However, the mechanisms through which loss and grief affect mental health are complex and multifaceted. Based on the framework of stress-and-coping theory, this cross-sectional study aimed to evaluate the potential moderating effects of social support, resilience, and spirituality on the relationship between complicated grief and quality of life among women who have experienced pregnancy loss.

Participants and procedure:
Data from paper-pencil surveys were obtained from 333 Bavarian females aged 18-67 years who had suffered the loss of a pregnancy. Moderated regression modelling using 5,000 bootstrap confidence intervals was conducted to test the hypotheses.

Results:
The results confirmed the moderating role of spirituality and social support. More specifically, the relationship between complicated grief and quality of life was significant when social support or spirituality was low and non-significant when levels of each moderator were high. While resilience was a positive predictor of quality of life, it did not prove to be a significant moderator in the impact of complicated grief.

Conclusions:
Our findings suggest that healthcare providers and support systems should consider tailoring interventions that focus on spirituality and social support to break the negative impact of experiences related to pregnancy loss on overall mental health. Nevertheless, it is important to note that the data were drawn from support groups organized by Caritas Germany, underscoring the need for more diverse demographic representation to enhance generalizability.