Book Chapter
Measuring bereavement as a consequence of war
In: Birch, M., Hagopian, A. (Eds.): De Gruyter handbook on conflict and health, 445–458
De Gruyter contemporary social sciences handbooks 12
Berlin, De Gruyter (2026)
Abstract
This chapter introduces a novel demographic methodology to measure family bereavement as a consequence of war, addressing a critical gap in traditional mortality statistics that often fail to capture the toll of kin loss on survivors. The methodology focuses on quantifying parental and offspring bereavement by leveraging established demographic models and integrating data on mortality and estimates of kinship structures. The approach involves three primary steps: first, calculating the average kinship structures within a population to determine the number of relatives who may experience bereavement attributable to each war-related death; second, estimating war mortality data by age and sex; and third, computing bereavement incidence rates, which indicate the per-capita number of kin lost to war. This methodology is illustrated by applying it to the case of Afghanistan, examining the period from 1989 to 2022, to demonstrate its practical application in a real-world conflict scenario. This method provides an alternative understanding of the far-reaching harms of war on populations, with important implications for mental and psychosocial health. The application to Afghanistan illustrates how this approach can uncover the broader social and emotional consequences of conflict, offering valuable insights for post-war recovery efforts. The study lays the groundwork for future research to expand the scope of war bereavement analysis, including the war-related loss of loved ones. Insights from this and similar studies can ultimately contribute to inform policymaking aimed at providing support for war-affected populations.
Keywords: Afghanistan, excess mortality, kinship, methodology, war