ABSTRACT
This chapter describes the research methods: how the women were recruited to the study, the response rates at each phase of the study and the measures that were used to collect the data at each of the four interviews. It provides a profile of the sociodemographic characteristics of the bereaved and nonbereaved mothers who took part in the study. The study took place in the south eastern corner of Queensland, Australia. Although the role of the interviewer was confined to the collection of data, the need for qualified interviewers was dictated by the nature of the study. Comparisons between participants and nonparticipants in the study have been discussed at length elsewhere but, in short, women who did not participate were significantly more likely to be uninsured public hospital patients who were younger, unmarried or unemployed. Importantly, however, the mental health of those lost to follow-up did not appear to differ from those who remained in the study.
