Inventory of Complicated Spiritual Grief: Development and Validation of a New Measure Laurie A. Burke and Robert A. Neimeyer Department of Psychology, University of Memphis, Memphis, Tennessee, USA Jason M. Holland Department of Psychology, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA Sharon Dennard and Linda Oliver Mt. Ararat Baptist Church, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA M. Katherine Shear School of Social Work, Columbia University, New York, New York, USA Although spirituality often has been associated with better outcomes following bereavement, it can be significantly challenged by loss as well. Studies have shown that some bereaved individuals suffer profoundly not only in relation to the death of their loved one but also in their relationship with God and their faith community, a condition known as complicated spiritual grief (CSG). However, to date, in the absence of a simple, multidimensional, and well-validated measure of spiritual crisis following loss, investigators have measured CSG with nongrief-specific instruments. In this study, the authors tested the reliability and validity of a newly developed measure of CSG, called the Inventory of Complicated Spiritual Grief (ICSG). With 2 diverse samples of bereaved adult Christians (total n ¼ 304), the authors found that the ICSG had strong internal consistency, and high test-retest reliability for both subscales in a subsample of participants. Analyses of both samples supported a 2-factor model, with one factor measuring Insecurity with God and the other assessing Disruption in Religious Practice. Analyses further supported the convergent and incremental validity of the 18-item ICSG relative to other theoretically similar instruments and measures of poor bereave- ment outcome, suggesting its usefulness in clinical research and practice. The loss of a loved one is a ubiquitous human experience, yet responses to this unwelcome transition are surpris- ingly varied. As studies demonstrate, many bereaved individuals are resilient and rebound emotionally within a few weeks or months of losing someone (Bonanno & Kaltman, 2001). Other bereaved people endorse signifi- cant grief symptoms for as long as 1–2 years before adapting to their changed lives (Bonnano & Mancini, 2006). In contrast, a substantial portion of the bereaved population suffers immensely and grieves for a prolonged period of time. This type of grief response— complicated grief (CG; Prigerson et al., 1995; Shear et al., 2011; also termed prolonged grief disorder [PGD]; Prigerson et al., 2009) is protracted, debilitating, and sometimes life threatening. CG is characterized by a state of prolonged grieving, during which the mourner Received 12 December 2012; accepted 15 May 2013. We gratefully acknowledge the grant support from the Tennessee Board of Regents for the project African Americans in Bereavement II: Assessment and Treatment of Complicated Spiritual Grief following Traumatic Loss. Address correspondence to Laurie A. Burke, University of Memphis, 400 Innovation Dr., 202 Psychology Building, Memphis, TN 38152. E-mail: laburke@memphis.edu Death Studies, 38: 239–250, 2014 Copyright # Taylor & Francis Group, LLC ISSN: 0748-1187 print=1091-7683 online DOI: 10.1080/07481187.2013.810098