The network theory of prolonged grief posits that causal interactions among symptoms of prolonged grief play a significant role in their coherence and persistence as a syndrome. Drawing on recent developments in the broader network approach to psychopathology, we argue that advancing our understanding of the causal system that gives rise to prolonged grief will require that we (a) strengthen our assessment of each component of the grief syndrome, (b) investigate intra-individual relationships among grief components as they evolve over time within individuals, (c) incorporate biological and social components into network studies of grief, and (d) generate formal theories that posit precisely how these biological, psychological, and social components interact with one another to give rise to prolonged grief disorder.

长期悲伤的网络理论认为，长期悲伤症状之间的因果相互作用在它们作为一种综合症的连贯性和持久性中起着重要作用。借鉴更广泛的精神病理学网络方法的最新发展，我们认为，要加深我们对导致长期悲伤的因果系统的理解，我们将需要 (a) 加强对悲伤综合症每个组成部分的评估，(b) 调查随着时间的推移在个体内部演变，悲伤成分之间的个体内关系，(c) 将生物学和社会成分纳入悲伤的网络研究，以及 (d) 产生正式的理论，准确地假定这些生物学、心理和社会成分如何与悲伤相互作用彼此之间会导致长期悲伤障碍。