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This self-assessment Inventory of Complicated Grief (ICG) , was originally developed by Holly G. Prigerson and colleagues . TraitProfiler provides an interactive digital version for educational, informational, and self-exploration purposes only.

Inventory of Complicated Grief (ICG)

Background

About the Inventory of Complicated Grief (ICG)

The Inventory of Complicated Grief (ICG) is a widely used self-report questionnaire designed to assess prolonged grief reactions, emotional distress after bereavement, separation-related distress, and difficulties adapting following the death of a loved one.
The ICG was developed by Holly G. Prigerson and colleagues during the 1990s to identify symptoms associated with complicated grief, persistent grief reactions, and prolonged bereavement-related emotional difficulties.
The questionnaire evaluates emotional pain, longing, disbelief, emotional numbness, social withdrawal, grief-related distress, bitterness, loneliness, and difficulty adjusting after loss.
Research studies have demonstrated strong reliability and validity for the ICG across grief research, bereavement counseling, trauma studies, psychiatry, palliative care, and mental health settings.

Psychological Domains Measured

Separation Distress
Measures yearning, longing, emotional attachment, and distress related to separation from the deceased person.
Emotional Pain and Longing
Measures sadness, emotional suffering, loneliness, bitterness, grief-related pain, and emotional distress.
Difficulty Accepting the Loss
Measures disbelief, emotional shock, difficulty accepting the death, and problems emotionally processing the loss.
Social and Emotional Disconnection
Measures emotional numbness, reduced trust, social withdrawal, loneliness, and interpersonal disconnection after loss.
Traumatic Grief Reactions
Measures intrusive grief experiences, emotional overwhelm, avoidance, distressing sensory experiences, and trauma-related grief reactions.
Grief-Related Preoccupation
Measures persistent thoughts, mental preoccupation, emotional focus on the deceased person, and grief-related rumination.
The ICG is commonly used in grief counseling, bereavement research, trauma studies, psychiatry, palliative care, and mental health settings. The questionnaire is intended as a screening instrument and should not be used as a standalone diagnostic tool.

Procedure

This questionnaire is designed to evaluate emotional, cognitive, interpersonal, and behavioral experiences associated with grief and bereavement after the death of a loved one.

Participants select the response option that best reflects how often they experience each grief-related thought, feeling, or emotional reaction.

The assessment focuses on longing, sadness, disbelief, emotional pain, loneliness, grief-related preoccupation, emotional disconnection, and difficulty adjusting after loss.

Participation

This assessment is designed for adolescents and adults who have experienced the death of a loved one and are interested in understanding grief-related emotional experiences and bereavement adjustment.

The questionnaire is intended for educational, screening, and research purposes only.

Results should not be considered a clinical diagnosis or substitute for professional psychological, psychiatric, grief counseling, or medical evaluation.

Scoring & Interpretation

Responses are scored according to the frequency and intensity of grief-related emotional experiences, separation distress, emotional pain, and difficulty adjusting after loss.

Higher scores generally indicate stronger prolonged grief reactions, emotional distress, grief-related preoccupation, loneliness, emotional pain, and difficulties adapting following bereavement.

Some items measure emotional numbness, disbelief, avoidance, social withdrawal, or trauma-related grief reactions associated with complicated grief experiences.

Dimensional scores are also calculated to evaluate specific grief-related psychological domains independently.

Inventory of Complicated Grief (ICG) Questionnaire

Instructions & Terms

Below is the Inventory of Complicated Grief (ICG), a digitally adapted 19- items self-assessment questionnaire. This assessment does not provide a clinical diagnosis, medical determination, or substitute for professional psychological evaluation. Anonymous responses may be included in research statistics and normative datasets.Please answer each question honestly based on your experiences since the death of the person you lost.

Select the option that best reflects how frequently each experience, emotion, or thought occurs in your daily life.

There are no right or wrong answers. Some grief reactions are common after bereavement, while stronger or more persistent grief-related experiences may indicate ongoing emotional distress or difficulty adapting after loss.



Psychometric Norms

46
Participants
65%
Community Mean
9.1%
Sample SD
87%
Highest Observed Score
54%
Lowest Observed Score
2026–2026
Collection Period

All response data are collected anonymously through [Grief Test] Inventory of Complicated Grief (ICG) and are intended exclusively for educational, psychometric, and non-commercial research purposes. Privacy Policy | Research Statistics

Sources
  1. Prigerson, and colleagues Inventory of Complicated Grief: A scale to measure maladaptive symptoms of loss. Psychiatry research vol. 59,1-2 (1995)