What question did this study set out to answer?

The study identifies distinct symptom profiles related to complicated grief and PTSD in parents affected by the Sewol ferry disaster and their relationship with social factors.

March 10, 2026Open Access

Traumatic Loss After the Sewol Ferry Disaster: Latent Profiles of Grief and Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and Their Links to Social Stress, Growth, and Quality of Life

Key Points

The study identifies distinct symptom profiles related to complicated grief and PTSD in parents affected by the Sewol ferry disaster and their relationship with social factors.
Analyzed responses from 272 bereaved parents using self-report scales.
Utilized latent profile analysis to classify complicated grief and PTSD symptoms.
Examined predictors like interpersonal stress and familial conflict for symptom profiles.
Identified three symptom profiles: low (30.4%), moderate (49.6%), and high (20.0%) symptomatology.
Higher interpersonal stress correlated with increased odds of moderate and high symptomatology.
Low symptomatology group reported the highest quality of life, with significant differences in posttraumatic growth between groups.

Abstract

Objective This study aimed to identify different symptom profiles of complicated grief/bereavement-related posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and examine the associations with social life factors, posttraumatic growth, and quality of life in a sample of parents whose children died in Sewol ferry accident.Methods A total of 272 bereaved parents affected by the Sewol ferry accident participated and completed self-report scales about traumatic loss-related symptoms. The latent profile analysis (LPA) of complicated grief and posttraumatic symptoms was classified. To examine the predictors (interpersonal stress/familial conflict/social support) and outcomes (posttraumatic growth/quality of life) of the traumatic loss symptom profiles, an automatic three-step approach was chosen.Results The LPA identified three symptom profiles of complicated grief and posttraumatic stress: low symptomatology group (30.4%), moderate symptomatology group (49.6%), and high symptomatology group (20.0%). Higher perceived interpersonal stress significantly increased the odds of moderate and high symptomatology, while higher family stress was a significant predictor for high symptomatology compared to both low and moderate symptomatology groups. In addition, higher perceived social support significantly decreased the odds of being in both moderate and high symptomatology groups compared to the low group. The low symptomatology group showed the highest quality of life, followed by the moderate and high groups. Posttraumatic growth was also significantly different between the classes, with the moderate symptomatology group reporting higher growth than the low symptomatology group.Conclusion Our findings suggest that managing the mental health of people who have experienced a traumatic loss will be a critical component of their quality of life in the future. In addition, interventions to help reduce family conflict and interpersonal stress may be necessary to reduce difficulties associated with psychopathology.

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