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Monozygotic and Dizygotic Twins' Retrospective and Current Bereavement-related Behaviors: An Evolutionary Perspective

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  21 February 2012

Nancy L. Segal ,
Lauren J. Sussman ,
William D. Marelich ,
Jack Mearns  and
Shelley A. Blozis
Nancy L. Segal*
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, California State University, Fullerton, California, USA. nsegal@fullerton.edu
Lauren J. Sussman
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, California State University, Fullerton, California, USA.
William D. Marelich
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, California State University, Fullerton, California, USA.
Jack Mearns
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, California State University, Fullerton, California, USA.
Shelley A. Blozis
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, University of California, Davis, California, USA.
*
*Address for correspondence: Nancy Segal, Department of Psychology, California State University, Fullerton, CA 92834 USA.

Abstract

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The present study compared bereavement responses of 325 monozygotic (MZ) and 176 dizygotic (DZ) adolescent and adult twins following the loss of their co-twins. A subset of twins completed the Grief Experience Inventory using a retrospective time frame, while a second subset completed it using a current time frame. It was hypothesized that MZ twins (in both retrospective and current groups) would report higher levels of grief-related behavior than DZ twins, consistent with Hamilton's (1964) concept of inclusive fitness. Discriminant function and profile analyses yielded supportive findings, but only for the retrospective MZ and DZ twin comparisons. Females in both groups expressed higher levels of bereave-ment-related behavior than males. Findings are discussed with reference to theoretical aspects of grief and mourning.

Type
Pre Congress Symposium
Information
Twin Research and Human Genetics , Volume 5 , Issue 3 , 01 June 2002 , pp. 188 - 195
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2002