[Adjustment to spousal bereavement and successful aging: a 16-year longitudinal study]

The objective of this study was to prove the hypothesis that successful aging was predicted by the recovery processes during the first few years of bereavement. The subjects were 184 elderly persons, whose spouses died three to 14 months prior to the first survey. Interviews were held three times in 16 years. Results showed that the depression level at the first interview was a significant factor to predict the sickness and death at the second interview, but not at the third interview. When the level of loneliness increased by the second interview than at the first, it was revealed that there were risks in sickness and death for the third interview. If the level of loneliness increased or remained high after bereavement, mental health conditions during the third interview tended to be poor. On the other hand, as loneliness decreased, happiness during the third interview increased. We concluded that a change in loneliness after bereavement was the key factor in suggesting the process of successful aging.