Widowhood in an American city

The general purpose of this study was to collect data which would describe the social and psychological characteristics of widows and identify the support systems available to them in an urban setting. In 1968, the staff of the National Opinion Research Center interviewed 301 Chicago area widows, selected by means of modified area probability sampling, who had not remarried and who were residing in private dwellings. Approximately one-half of the participants in this study were between 50 and 64 years of age when interviewed; the remaining half were 65 or older. The interview schedule consisted primarily of precoded items and included questions concerning the education and employment history of the respondent (both before and after her husband's death), family and community relationships, background and general demographic characteristics, and the social and emotional adjustment to widowhood. The interview also included several open-ended items dealing with general issues of widowhood, such as the possible advantages of widowhood and the ways in which the respondent had changed since the death of her husband. Computer-accessible data are available at the Murray Center.