Increased empathy and helping behavior toward the mother in daughters of Holocaust survivors.

Alkalay, Sarit; Sagi‐Schwartz, Abraham; Wiseman, Hadas

doi:10.1037/trm0000211

Cited by 4 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 47 publications

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“…As caregivers to their older adult parents, OHS provide elevated levels of instrumental help relative to comparisons (Alkalay et al, 2020) and express intense dedication, caregiver stress, and guilt for not doing enough to protect parents from further pain in late life (Shrira et al, 2019). Social distancing prevented OHS from visiting the parents, and protecting parents who reside in nursing homes has been especially challenging due to public health restrictions.…”

Section: Psychological Distress In Offspring Of Holocaust Survivorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Parental PTSD and psychological reactions during the COVID-19 pandemic among offspring of Holocaust survivors.

Shrira¹,

Felsen²

2021

Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy

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Objective: Previous evidence suggests heightened sensitivity to life-threatening challenges among offspring of Holocaust survivors (OHS). Therefore, this study examined the psychological reactions of aging OHS during the COVID-19 pandemic. Method: A convenience sample (N = 297, mean age = 66.85) of North American Jews rated posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms for their parents and for themselves. They further rated their psychological distress, COVID-19-related worries, loneliness, and social support. Respondents were divided into four groups: OHS with two parents with probable PTSD, with one such parent, with no such parent, and comparisons whose parents did not undergo the Holocaust. Results: OHS with two parents with PTSD reported the highest levels of PTSD symptoms. Controlling for respondents' own PTSD, OHS with two parents with PTSD reported higher psychological distress relative to comparisons. Moreover, OHS with parental PTSD reported higher loneliness relative to OHS without parental PTSD or comparisons. The groups did not differ in COVID-19-related worries or social support. Conclusions: The distress experienced by OHS with parental PTSD seems more general, and is possibly related to the multiple coalescing crises that occurred since the pandemic began, rather than to the health risk associated directly with COVID-19. Moreover, while OHS acknowledge having good social support, some of them nevertheless feel lonely. This possibly reflects unique interpersonal difficulties characteristic in Holocaust survivor families. These findings suggest that OHS with parental PTSD (especially when both parents had symptoms) represent a group of older adults who are relatively susceptible to negative psychological effects of the current pandemic. Clinical Impact StatementPreliminary COVID-19-related studies indicate that older adults might be vulnerable to negative mental health effects associated with social distancing and isolation. Identifying older adults who might be particularly vulnerable will allow more timely effective intervention and prevention of adverse effects. We identified vulnerabilities to PTSD, psychological distress, and loneliness among aging offspring of Holocaust survivors with parental PTSD, which render these older adults more susceptible to negative effects related to COVID-19 and to the coalescing crises that followed. Parental PTSD might constitute a risk factor for such vulnerabilities also in other groups of older adults.

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Section: Psychological Distress In Offspring Of Holocaust Survivorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Parental PTSD and psychological reactions during the COVID-19 pandemic among offspring of Holocaust survivors.

Shrira¹,

Felsen²

2021

Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy

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“…One of these studies reported an association between adjusted and open communication and fewer difficulties in the relationship between survivors and their children (Trachtenberg & Davis, 1978). Similarly, a recent study showed that daughters who had more factual knowledge about their mothers' experiences in the Holocaust exhibited more empathetic responses to their mothers (Alkalay et al, 2019).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 93%

Holocaust communication, attachment orientation and distress among descendants of female holocaust survivors

Freud

Berant

2022

Family Process

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The multiple studies that have examined the transgenerational transmission of Holocaust trauma from survivors to their descendants have yielded inconsistent results. These can be attributed to differences in assessment tools and to individual differences between survivors, such as their specific experiences during the Holocaust. This study examined the differences between daughters and granddaughters of female Holocaust survivors (HS) of concentration camps (CCS) versus survivors of other circumstances (ghettos, concealment, etc.; OCCS) in terms of communication about their mothers' or grandmothers' Holocaust trauma (Holocaust communication), their attachment orientations, and their psychological distress. The sample was composed of 79 dyads of daughters of HS and their own daughters, divided into two groups according to the survivors' Holocaust experiences (CCS—47 dyads; OCCS—32 dyads). The findings indicated that daughters of CCS reported a higher number of conversations about the Holocaust with their mothers, perceived their mothers as more distant during Holocaust communication, and reported more guilt feelings than daughters of OCCS. Holocaust communication between daughters and granddaughters was characterized by shorter conversations, and granddaughters perceived their mothers as sadder in the CCS group than in the OCCS group. No difference between groups was found in Holocaust communication between survivors and their granddaughters. No difference was found between groups in their psychological distress. The granddaughters of CCS scored higher on attachment anxiety than the other group. Most of the significant differences between groups were linked to subtle differences in the characteristics of communication and in the inter‐personal sphere.

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“…With that major caveat in place, we can point out that there is some evidence that PTG is "transmissible" to close others, and even to larger groups and social systems [66,103]. For example, life partners, siblings and/or caregivers of cancer patients or cancer survivors have reported PTG in various studies [104][105][106][107].…”

Section: Growth From One To Manymentioning

confidence: 99%

Catalyst Twenty-Twenty: Post-Traumatic Growth at Scales of Person, Place and Planet

Logan¹,

Berman

Scott

et al. 2021

Challenges

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Planetary health is a broad multidisciplinary effort that attempts to address what has been described as “Anthropocene Syndrome”—the wicked, interrelated challenges of our time. These include, but are not limited to, grotesque biodiversity losses, climate change, environmental degradation, resource depletion, the global burden of non-communicable diseases (NCDs), health inequalities, social injustices, erosion of wisdom and civility, together with the many structural underpinnings of these grand challenges. The ultimate aim of planetary health is flourishing along every link in the person, place and planet continuum. The events of “2020” have illuminated the consequences of “mass trauma” and how sub-threshold anxiety and/or depressive symptoms erase the rigid lines between mental “health” and mental “disorders”, and unmasked the systemic forms of injustice, discrimination, and oppression that have too often escaped discourse. Here, we query the ways in which post-traumatic growth research might inform the larger planetary health community, especially in the context of a global pandemic, broadening socioeconomic inequalities, a worsening climate crisis, and the rise of political authoritarianism. The available research would suggest that “2020” fulfills the trauma criteria of having a “seismic impact on the assumptive world”, and as such, provides fertile ground for post-traumatic growth. Among the many potential positive changes that might occur in response to trauma, we focus on the value of new awareness, perspective and greater wisdom.

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Increased empathy and helping behavior toward the mother in daughters of Holocaust survivors.

Cited by 4 publications

References 47 publications

Parental PTSD and psychological reactions during the COVID-19 pandemic among offspring of Holocaust survivors.

Parental PTSD and psychological reactions during the COVID-19 pandemic among offspring of Holocaust survivors.

Holocaust communication, attachment orientation and distress among descendants of female holocaust survivors

Catalyst Twenty-Twenty: Post-Traumatic Growth at Scales of Person, Place and Planet

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