Public stigma towards prolonged grief disorder: Does diagnostic labeling matter?

Area of Science:

• Psychiatry
• Psychology
• Social Science

Background:

• The introduction of prolonged grief disorder (PGD) as a diagnostic category may lead to public stigma.
• Previous research indicates that individuals with PGD symptoms and a PGD diagnosis elicit more public stigma than those with integrated grief.
• The specific contribution of the diagnostic label itself to public stigma, independent of PGD symptoms, requires clarification.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine if the diagnostic label of PGD creates additional public stigma beyond the presence of PGD symptoms.
• To compare public stigma associated with the PGD label versus the major depressive episode (MDE) label when PGD symptoms are present.
• To investigate the influence of the bereaved person's gender on public stigma and its moderation of diagnostic label effects.

Main Methods:

• A vignette experiment involving 852 participants randomly assigned to read one of eight vignettes.
• Vignettes described bereaved individuals with varying combinations of PGD symptoms, PGD diagnosis, MDE diagnosis, or no diagnosis (integrated grief), and varying gender.
• Participants rated negative characteristics, emotional reactions, and desired social distance towards the vignette individuals.

Main Results:

• Individuals with PGD or MDE diagnoses alongside PGD symptoms were viewed more negatively and elicited greater social distance than those with integrated grief.
• Public stigma did not significantly differ between individuals with PGD symptoms and a PGD diagnosis compared to those with PGD symptoms alone.
• The bereaved person's gender influenced desired social distance, with greater distance desired towards men.

Conclusions:

• Severe grief reactions, rather than diagnostic labels (PGD or MDE) per se, are the primary drivers of public stigma.
• The diagnostic label itself does not appear to generate additional stigma beyond the distress caused by severe grief symptoms.
• Interventions should focus on helping severely distressed bereaved individuals cope with social reactions, irrespective of diagnostic status.