Do Holocaust survivors show increased vulnerability or resilience to post‐Holocaust cumulative adversity?

Abstract

Prior trauma can hinder coping with additional adversity or inoculate against the effect of recurrent adversity. The present study further addressed this issue by examining whether a subsample of Holocaust survivors and comparison groups, drawn from the Israeli component of the Survey of Health, Ageing, and Retirement in Europe, were differentially affected by post-Holocaust cumulative adversity. Post-Holocaust cumulative adversity had a stronger effect on the lifetime depression of Holocaust survivors than on that of comparisons. However, comparisons were more negatively affected by post-Holocaust cumulative adversity when examining markers of physical and cognitive functioning. Our findings suggest that previous trauma can both sensitize and immunize, as Holocaust survivors show general resilience intertwined with specific vulnerability when confronted with additional cumulative adversity.

Sense of threat and coping strategies of Israeli older adults during a military operation

“…As one of the respondents said: ''Relative to the Holocaust this was a children's game.'' This finding is consistent with previous studies that found that those who survived the Holocaust were more resilient in coping with mass trauma (e.g., Brown 2008;Frueh et al 2007;Shrira et al 2010). However, why some Holocaust survivors were less vulnerable and more resilient than others may be dependent on personality traits as well as other reasons, but this merits further investigation.…”

“…Shmotkin et al (2003) found no significant differences between Holocaust survivors and older people who were not Holocaust survivors. Another study (Shrira et al 2010) found that previous trauma can both sensitize and immunize, suggesting that Holocaust survivors were not only simultaneously more resilient, but also more vulnerable when confronted with additional adversity.…”

The inoculating role of previous exposure to potentially traumatic life events on coping with prolonged exposure to rocket attacks: A lifespan perspective

“…The vulnerability hypothesis (Solomon and Ginzburg, 1998;Shrira et al, 2010;Shmotkin et al, 2011) argues that older adults are at risk to the impact of traumatic exposure, because of their poorer physical, social, and financial resources, and therefore older age is expected to be associated with higher levels of PTS. Other authors argued that past traumatic exposure might cause specific or generalized cross-sensitive reaction to new exposure to negative life events (Garb et al, 1987).…”

Resilience and Vulnerability Among Aging Holocaust Survivors and Their Families: An Intergenerational Overview

“…Based on empirical findings from large community samples (Shmotkin, Blumstein, & Modan, 2003;Shmotkin & Lomranz, 1998;Shrira, Palgi, Ben-Ezra, & Shmotkin, 2010, 2011, this model posits that the resilience of older survivors is manifested in a wide range of capabilities that enable them to lead basically normal lives as compared with people who did not experience the Holocaust. As a theoretical construct, resilience is defined in various ways but, essentially, refers to a dynamic process leading to positive adaptation in the face of significant adversity (Luthar, Cicchetti, & Becker, 2000).…”

“…Additionally, specific vulnerabilities of survivors may be expressed in particular sensitivity to unusually stressful situations. For example, Holocaust survivors exhibit greater distress relative to others of their age who had not experienced the Holocaust, in response to various traumatic events in later life such as the threat of chemical warfare during the First Gulf War, the September 11 terrorist attacks in the United States, and becoming ill with cancer (Shrira et al, 2010).…”