Italian Grief and Meaning Reconstruction Inventory (GMRI): Exploratory, Confirmatory and Network Analyses

Abstract

The current study was conducted to develop and validate an Italian translation of the Grief and Meaning Reconstruction Inventory (GMRI) and evaluate its psychometric properties in a sample of 297 bereaved adults. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses established that the 16-item Italian GMRI yielded five clearly interpretable factors (Continuing Bonds, Personal Growth, Sense of Peace, Valuing Life and Emptiness & Meaninglessness). The instrument demonstrated good reliability and robust convergent validity, through the scale’s significant inverse correlation with the Inventory of Complicated Grief and general distress, depression, stress, and anxiety. Network analysis of the items indicated that Continuing Bonds and Valuing Life could potentially assume central positions in the process of constructing meaning in the face of bereavement. In summary, the study suggests that the Italian version of the GMRI is valid and reliable instrument for assessing reconstruction of meaning after the loss of a loved one among the bereaved Italian population.