Inventory of Complicated Spiritual Grief (ICSG)

Abstract

The Inventory of Complicated Spiritual Grief (ICSG) is an 18-item self-report measure developed by Burke and Neimeyer to assess specific forms of spiritual distress experienced following a significant grief or loss event. It is designed to quantify the severity of a post-loss spiritual crisis, distinguishing between typical spiritual questioning and debilitating, sustained spiritual impairment. The ICSG is a vital tool in clinical and research settings for identifying clients whose bereavement process is complicated by negative changes in their relationship with the divine, their faith community, or their religious practices. This psychological assessment allows clinicians to tailor interventions specifically toward the spiritual challenges faced by the bereaved individual.

Keywords

Complicated Spiritual Grief, ICSG, spiritual crisis, bereavement, loss, religious practice, insecurity with God, psychological inventory, assessment.

Authors

Laurie A. Burke, Robert A. Neimeyer.

Purpose

The primary purpose of the ICSG is to provide a reliable and validated instrument for assessing the intensity and specific manifestations of complicated spiritual grief (CSG). Unlike general measures of religious coping or distress, the ICSG specifically targets the disruptive patterns of thought, emotion, and behavior that arise when a major loss severely challenges an individual’s core spiritual beliefs or relationship with the divine. It is intended for use in clinical settings to help professionals diagnose and track progress in clients struggling with profound spiritual disorientation after bereavement.

Construct

The ICSG measures the construct of Complicated Spiritual Grief (CSG), which is defined as a persistent and pervasive inability to integrate the experience of loss within one’s existing spiritual framework, resulting in significant functional impairment. The scale operationalizes this construct through two distinct, yet related, factors:

• Insecurity with God: This factor captures feelings of anger, distrust, confusion, or abandonment toward a higher power. It reflects a fundamental breakdown in the perceived protective, loving, or just nature of the divine following the traumatic event or loss.
• Disruption in Religious Practice: This factor measures behavioral and experiential withdrawal from spiritual or religious activities (e.g., prayer, worship, fellowship). It reflects the loss of comfort and meaning previously derived from communal or private spiritual engagement.

Validity

Initial validation studies, such as the 2014 publication by Burke, Neimeyer, and colleagues, demonstrated robust psychometric properties for the ICSG. The scale exhibits strong construct validity, confirming that the ICSG effectively measures the intended theoretical framework of complicated spiritual grief, distinct from general grief or religious struggle. Furthermore, research supports its convergent validity through significant correlations with other measures of spiritual distress and complicated grief, while demonstrating discriminant validity by showing low correlation with measures of general psychological distress not related to spiritual conflict. These findings confirm the ICSG’s utility as a specialized measure of spiritual impairment post-loss.

Reliability

The ICSG has demonstrated high internal consistency across various samples, indicating strong reliability. High Cronbach’s alpha coefficients reported in the development studies suggest that the 18 items consistently measure the same underlying construct. Furthermore, the two subscales—Insecurity with God and Disruption in Religious Practice—also exhibit strong internal reliability, ensuring that scores derived from these factors are stable and trustworthy for clinical interpretation and research purposes.

Factor Analysis

Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses performed during the scale’s development established a clear, two-factor structure for the ICSG. This analysis confirmed that the 18 items load cleanly onto the two hypothesized dimensions of complicated spiritual grief:

• Factor 1: Insecurity with God (Items 1, 4, 7, 10, 13, 16, and 18). These items focus on cognitive and affective challenges related to questioning God’s benevolence, fairness, or protection.
• Factor 2: Disruption in Religious Practice (Items 2, 3, 5, 6, 8, 9, 11, 12, 14, 15, and 17). These items focus on behavioral avoidance, loss of fulfillment, and difficulty engaging in established spiritual disciplines and community fellowship.

The established two-factor model provides a nuanced framework for understanding the specific pathways through which spiritual struggle manifests following loss.

Instrument

Test Type: Self-report inventory

Format: 18 items utilizing a 5-point Likert scale.

Language Available: English (Original)

Population Group: Adults experiencing bereavement or significant loss.

Age Group: Adult (18+)

Population Details: Individuals who identify with or previously engaged in spiritual or religious practices and are currently struggling with the spiritual aftermath of a significant loss.

Test Methodology: Quantitative assessment of spiritual distress severity. Respondents rate the degree to which each statement is true for them, ranging from 0 (Not at all true) to 4 (Very definitely true).

Keywords

Psychometrics, spiritual distress, bereavement counseling, faith crisis, religious coping, clinical psychology, assessment tool.

Authors

Author ORCID Identifier: Not provided in source content.

Affiliation Email addresses: [email protected] (Robert A. Neimeyer), [email protected] (Laurie A. Burke)

Correspondence Address: Correspondence is typically handled through the authors’ academic affiliations, such as the University of Memphis.

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

The ICSG was initially developed and validated in 2014, with subsequent publications detailing its structure in 2015 and 2016. Specific information regarding permissions and fees for clinical or commercial use should be obtained directly from the primary authors (Burke and Neimeyer) or the publisher of the journal in which the scale was published. The scale is frequently cited in academic literature and is accessible for research purposes via the published articles.

Reference’s

The development and validation of the ICSG are primarily documented in the following academic publications:

• Burke, L.A., Neimeyer, R.A., Holland, J.M., Dennard, S., Oliver, L., Shear, M.K. (2014). Inventory of complicated spiritual grief: development and validation of a new measure. Death Studies, 38(4):239-50.
• Burke, L. A., & Neimeyer, R. A. (2015). Inventory of Complicated Spritual Grief (ICSG). In R. A. Neimeyer (Ed.), Techniques of grief therapy: Assessment and intervention. New York: Routledge.
• Burke, Laurie A. and Robert Neimeyer, A. (2016). Brief Report The Inventory of Complicated Spiritual Grief: Assessing Spiritual Crisis Following Loss. Religions, 7, 67; doi:10.3390/rel7060067.

The original PDF of the 2016 article containing the instrument can be downloaded here: http://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/7/6/67/pdf. Additional information is available via ResearchGate: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/287391818.

Items of the Inventory of Complicated Spiritual Grief (ICSG)

IMPORTANT: The following scale items must be preserved in their original language and must not be changed in any way.

1. I don’t understand why God has made it so hard for me.
2. I have withdrawn from my fellowship with other believers.
3. I go out of my way to avoid spiritual/ religious activities (e.g., prayer, worship, Bible reading).
4. I no longer feel safe and protected by God.
5. I find that spiritual/religious activities are not very fulfilling (e.g., prayer, worship, Bible reading)
6. I find it impossible to pray.
7. I struggle with accepting how a good God allows bad things to happen.
8. I find it difficult to surrender my life to God.
9. I don’t feel as comforted by church fellowship as I used to.
10. I can’t help feeling angry with God.
11. I don’t feel very much like joining in fellowship to praise God or to glorify Him.
12. The strong guiding light of my faith has grown dim and I feel lost.
13. I’m confused as to why God would let this happen.
14. I have lost my desire to worship.
15. I find it impossible to worship.
16. I feel my loss is unfair.
17. I sense the absence of God more than I do the presence of God.
18. I am a faithful believer, so I don’t understand why God did not protect me.

Scoring Instructions:

Items are rated on a 5-point Likert scale:

(0) Not at all true, (1) A little true, (2) Somewhat true, (3) Mostly true, (4) Very definitely true

Subscale Item Allocation:

• Insecurity with God: Items 1, 4, 7, 10, 13, 16, and 18
• Disruption in Religious Practice: Items 2, 3, 5, 6, 8, 9, 11, 12, 14, 15, and 17