Widowhood Woes: The Bayelsa Experience
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.14738/assrj.212.1704Abstract
The death of a husband is traumatic enough, yet the plight of the widow oftentimes, is further compounded by society and its traditions. The study, therefore, sought to determine the extent of adjustment among widows in Bayelsa State. The ex-post facto design was used and a sample size of 200 was derived through probability sampling technique. Two hypotheses were formulated and data collected using questionnaire which was analysed using Independent t-test. Results revealed that widowhood adjustment significantly differed on the bases of (1) Spirituality and (2) Age. It was concluded that adjustment tend to be easier for widows of higher spiritual level and those who are older. It was recommended for counsellors to be aware of the spiritual and other issues in their widow-clients lives and assist them to capitalize on these areas of strengths.
References
Ahonsi, B. S. (2008). Society, culture and the status of widows in contemporary Nigeria: A gender analysis. In B. Owasanoye and B. S. Ahonsi (Eds.), Widows in Nigeria: Issues, problems and prospects, (112 – 139). Lagos: Friedrich Elbert Foundation and Human Development Initiatives.
Alagoa, E. (2006). Widowhood practices in Bayelsa State. An unpublished report. Yenagoa: Better Life Programme.
Ambakederemo, E. T. (2011). Effect of pastoral counselling on widowhood grieving and adjustment among victims of Niger Delta crisis in Bayelsa State, Nigeria. An unpublished Ph.D thesis. University of Calabar, Nigeria.
Ball, J. F. (2001). Widows’ grief: The impact of age and mode of death. Omega Journal of Death and Dying, 7(4), 307 – 333.
Bowlby, J. (1982). Attachment and loss: Vol 1, Attachment. New York: Basic Books.
Carr, D., House, J. S., Kessler, R. C., Nesse, R. M., Sonnege, J. & Wortman, C. (2000). Marital quality and psychological adjustment to widowhood among older adults: A longitudinal analysis. Journal of Gerontology B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, 55, S197 – S207.
Ekime, M. O. (2009). The widow’s plight. Enugu: Wucik.
Ellison, C. G. (1991) Religious involvement and subjective wellGbeing. Journal of Health and Social Behaviour, 32, 80 – 99.
Fraley, R. C. & Shaver, P. R. (1999). Loss and bereavement: Attachment theory and recent controversies concerning “grief work” and the nature of detachment. In J. Cassidy & P. R. Shaver (Eds.), Handbook of attachment: Theory, research and clinical applications (735 – 759). New York: Guilford Press.
George, L. K., Larson, D. B., Koenig, H. G. & McCullough, M. E. (2000). Spirituality and health: What we know, what we need to know. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, 19, 102 G119.
Glick, I. O., Weiss, R. S. & Parkes, C. M. (2005). The first year of bereavement. New York: John Wiley.
Hamilton, M. A. (2005). A rating scale for depression. Journal of Neurosurgery and Psychiatry, 22, 56 – 62.
Kaunonen, S., AstedtGKurki, L., Paunonen, M. & Erijanti, J. (2000). Death in the Finnish family. International Journal of Nursing Practice, 6, 134 – 144.
Kleinman, A. & Kleinman, J. (1985). Somatization: The interconnections in Chinese society among culture, depressive experiences and the meanings of pain. In A. Kleinman & B. Goods (Eds.), Culture and depression: Studies in the anthropology and cross cultural psychiatry of affect and disorder (429 – 490). Berkeley: University of California Press.
Koenig, H. G. & Larson, D. B. (1998). Religion and mental health. In H. S. Friedman (Ed.), Encyclopaedia of mental health 1(3). San Diego: Academic Press.
Koenig, H. G. (2001). Religion and medicine II: Religion, mental health and related behaviours. International Journal of Psychiatry, 31, 97 – 109.
Manton, K. (1989). The stress buffering role of spiritual support: Cross sectional and prospective investigations. Journal of the Scientific Study of Religion, 28, 310 – 323.
Olusakin, A. M. (2006). Gender inequality and the status of widows in Nigeria: Implications for counselling. Journal of Research in Counselling Psychology, 4(4), 99 – 105.
Oniye, A. O. (2000). Adjustment strategies of Nigerian widows to widowhood stress: Issues for rehabilitation counselling. African Journal of Educational Studies, 1(2), 130 – 138.
Ryff, C. D. & Singer, B. (2003). Flourishing under fire: Resilience as a prototype of challenged thriving. In C. L. M. Keyes & J. Hait (Eds), Flourishing: Positive Psychology and the life wellGlived (15 – 36). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
Sevak, P., Weir, D. R. & Willis, R. J. (2004). Age at husband’s death, social security online. Research and Analysis, Social Security Bulletin, 65(3), 202 – 210.
Siegel, J. M. & Kuykendall, D. H. (1990). Loss, widowhood and psychological distress among the elderly. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 58, 519 – 524.
Social Welfare Unit (2014). Registration of widows. Yenagoa: Ministry of Social Welfare.
Stroebe, M. & Stroebe, W. (1987). Health outcomes of bereavement. Lancet, 370, 196 – 207.
Uche, R. D. (2015). Delinquency and maladaptive behaviour among youths and adults. In D. I. Denga (Ed.) Credible educational response to current challenges plaguing Nigeria (349 – 370). Calabar: Rapid Educational. United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Report (2006) www. Ng.undp.org/report. Retrieved 18 – 5 –2010.
Uche,'R.'D.'(2015).'Widwhood'Woes:'The'Bayelsa'Experi.)Advances)in)Social)Sciences)Research)Journal,)2(12))65B72.' Van Den Brink, C. L., Tijhuis, M., Van Den Bos, G. A. Giampadi, Kilnen, P., Nissinen, A. & Kromhout, D. (2004). Effect of widowhood on disability onset in elderly men from three European countries. Journal of American Geriatric Society, 53, 353 – 358.
Victor, D. (2003). Psychological adjustment to sudden and acute spousal loss among widowed persons. www.cloc.isr.unich.eu /papers/car. Retrieved 28 – 7 – 2010.
