The Association of Family Bereavement With Life Satisfaction and Depressive Symptoms Among Middle-Aged and Older Adults: Exposure and Cumulative Effects of Family Bereavement

This study aims to examine the association of family bereavement with life satisfaction and depressive symptoms among middle-agedand older adults, in terms of (1) experience of family bereavement, (2) experience of different types of family bereavement, and (3) the cumulative number of family losses. We analyzed data from the 1st (2006; N = 9,687; all family losses experienced until 2006) and 8th (2020; N = 5,236; recent family losses experienced in the past four years) waves of the Korean Longitudinal Study of Ageing. First, recent family bereavement was negatively associated with life satisfaction, while family bereavement across the life span was not significant for life satisfaction and depressive symptoms. Second, among losses across the life span, father and spouse deaths were significant for life satisfaction and depressive symptoms; among recent losses, only spousal bereavement was associated with life satisfaction and depressive symptoms. Finally, the cumulative number of family losses across the life span (including father, mother, and spouse) was significant for life satisfaction and depressive symptoms, whereas the cumulative number of recent family losses (including father, mother, siblings, children,and spouse) was not significant. These findings underscore the importance of examining both exposure and cumulative effects of family bereavement.