Exploring reactivity effects of self-monitoring prolonged grief reactions in daily life: A randomized waitlist-controlled trial using experience sampling methodology.

Background: While people's symptomatology levels may change through self-monitoring of symptoms in daily life using experience sampling methodology (ESM), no controlled studies have examined such reactivity effects in the grief field. Objective: We investigated reactivity effects of self-monitoring prolonged grief reactions to determine whether self-monitoring leads to clinically significant changes in early prolonged grief disorder (PGD), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and depression symptoms at both group and individual levels. Methods: 184 adults, bereaved 3 to 6 months earlier, were randomized to an ESM ( Results: At the group level, no significant reactivity effect of self-monitoring on symptom severity for PGD, PTSD, and depression was found. Individual-level analyses indicated that most participants did not experience clinically relevant changes from pre- to post-ESM. However, people with higher baseline-PGD-scores were more likely to experience clinically relevant improvements. Conclusion: Self-monitoring prolonged grief in daily life does not seem to induce reactivity effects in symptom severity, supporting ESM as a suitable method for monitoring early prolonged grief in everyday life. Self-monitoring may benefit those with more severe initial symptoms, offering potential for targeted self-management strategies in bereavement care.