At the Department of Geography and Geographic Information Systems at the College of Arts / University of Basrah, a master's thesis entitled (Spatial Analysis of the Phenomenon of Widows in the City of Shatt al-Arab, a study in population geography).

The thesis presented by the student Tahani Tawfiq Yousef Al-Jabri included five chapters. The first chapter discussed the general framework of widowhood (the concept of widowhood and the view of Islam and the Arab and international countries towards it), the second chapter included the demographic, social, housing and economic characteristics of widows in the city of Shatt al-Arab, the third chapter discussed the geographical distribution of widows in the city of Shatt al-Arab, the fourth chapter dealt with the causes and effects of widowhood, and the fifth chapter dealt with means of mitigating and limiting the effects of widowhood. Finally, the study concluded with a set of findings and recommendations.

The study reached a number of results, the most important of which was the spatial variation of the phenomenon, which accounted for the most populous neighborhoods, the low level of income of widows, and the degree of deprivation experienced by this segment of society, in addition to the inferior social view of widows. 

The study showed that widows receive care mainly from the Social Welfare Department, some charitable institutions, parents, relatives, and neighbours.