Knowledge about traumatic World War II experiences among ancestors and subjective well-being of young adults: A person-centred perspective

Rzeszutek, Marcin; Lis-Turlejska, Maja; Pięta, Małgorzata; Karlsen, Monika; Backus, Holly; Florek, Wiktoria; Lisowska, Katarzyna; Pankowski, Daniel; Szumiał, Szymon

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0237859

Cited by 6 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 35 publications

(59 reference statements)

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“…One should remember that families who shared WWII-related traumatic experiences may also form more intimate relationships with family members, which may translate into better psychological well-being. All in all, it appears that only sharing the entire family history with offspring, no matter how traumatic that history is and how difficult it may be to share it, can help put an end to the vicious cycle of intergenerational transmission of trauma, as has been highlighted by recent work 19 , 40 , 41 .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This inventory checked participants' knowledge of traumatic events that their parents and/or grandparents (depending on participant age) may have experienced during WWII 41 (see Appendices ). Participants were asked twenty-seven questions associated with various WWII-related traumatic experiences of their ancestors.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This aligns with developmental theories, highlighting that sharing a family history with children significantly predicts their self-identity and psychological well-being 39 . Nevertheless, there is still scant research on the issue of knowledge about traumatic family stories, particularly related to the experiences of ancestors 40 , 41 .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Long-lasting effects of World War II trauma on PTSD symptoms and embodiment levels in a national sample of Poles

Rzeszutek,

Dragan,

Lis-Turlejska

et al. 2023

Sci Rep

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The main aim of this study was to investigate the long-lasting influences of World War II (WWII) trauma in a national sample of Poles, based on Danieli’s (1998) survivors’ post-trauma adaptational styles (fighter, numb, victim) and their link with current post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms and embodiment level among participants. We also sought to investigate whether the level of knowledge about WWII trauma among ancestors could moderate that association. The study was conducted among a representative sample of 1598 adult Poles obtained from an external company. Participants filled out the Danieli Inventory of Multigenerational Legacies of Trauma, the knowledge about traumatic World War II experiences in the family questionnaire, the Posttraumatic Diagnostic Scale-5, and the Experience of Embodiment Scale. We observed a positive relationship between all survivors’ post-trauma adaptational styles and current levels of PTSD symptoms among participants. In addition, PTSD level mediated the relationships between those adaptational styles and embodiment intensity; that mediation was additionally moderated by a lack of knowledge about WWII trauma among ancestors in our participants. Our study adds to the literature on intergenerational trauma by highlighting the importance of evaluating embodiment in understanding the mechanisms of trauma transmission. Furthermore, it highlights the moderating effect of knowledge of family history in this mechanism and the need to share family histories with subsequent generations.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Long-lasting effects of World War II trauma on PTSD symptoms and embodiment levels in a national sample of Poles

Rzeszutek,

Dragan,

Lis-Turlejska

et al. 2023

Sci Rep

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“…This secret, however, is different, stemming from an utterly different past that silently yet tyrannically intrudes into the psychic reality of the child. (Bohleber 2010: 71;Bergmann et al 1998) Accordingly, while both children of the victims and perpetrators express similar feelings -such as anger, shame or guilt -the background and reasons for these emotions differ to a large degree, and are inextricably linked to the surrounding society (e.g., Welzer et al 1997;Gobodo-Madikizela 2021a;Bohleber 2010;Rzeszutek et al 2020).…”

Section: The Untold Trauma and Silencementioning

confidence: 99%

Posljedice neizrečenoga i zašto se skriveno mora saznati

Pabst¹

2023

Nar. umjet. (Online)

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The article takes its starting point in more than 160 personal narratives from former migrants, their children, and grandchildren. The testimonies have been collected by cultural-history museums in seven European countries – Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Poland, Lithuania, Slovenia and Croatia – and provide a haunting impression of the long-term consequences of war and forced migration for at least three generations. The research aimed at understanding how exactly the Untold and the silence of the first generation – the not-sharing of what they, as time witnesses, experienced – can be sensed by their children and grandchildren and influence their lives, family relations and the surrounding society in a negative way. The findings show that the need for personal and public information by the second and third generations cannot be overestimated and that sharing and getting to know could be a key to more healthy relations between family members and within communities.

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“…For example, while the PTSD rates among civilian survivors of WWII range from 1.9% in Austria [49] to 10.9% in Germany [50], among Polish survivors of WWII, these rates vary from 29.4% [25] to 38.3% [48] and even to 55.6% among Jewish Holocaust survivors in Poland (members of the Association of Children of the Holocaust) [44]. On the other hand, there is a massive body of literature on the issue of intergenerational transmission of trauma [for reviews and meta-analyses, see [51][52][53]; this has been empirically investigated in Poland as well, although only in convenience samples [48,54,55]. In particular, the problem of the potential transmission of this historic trauma through generations of Polish families may be exacerbated by the lack of social acknowledgement and linked with this, states of helplessness and hopelessness on both individual and collective levels (Figs 1, 2) [48].…”

Section: Plos Onementioning

confidence: 99%

Exposure to self-reported traumatic events and probable PTSD in a national sample of Poles: Why does Poland’s PTSD prevalence differ from other national estimates?

Rzeszutek,

Dragan,

Lis-Turlejska

et al. 2023

PLoS ONE

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Background There is a lack of studies on trauma exposure and PTSD prevalence in Poland on representative samples. Available data from studies on convenient samples show very high rates of probable PTSD compared with relevant estimates in other countries. Objective This study aimed to measure the exposure to self-report traumatic events (PTEs) and to estimate the current rate of prevalence of probable posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in accordance with DSM–5 criteria in a population-based sample of Poles. Additionally, the link between PTSD intensity and level of life satisfaction was investigated. Method A representative sample of 1,598 adult Poles was recruited. Probable PTSD was assessed with the Posttraumatic Diagnostic Scale for DSM–5 (PDS–5) and the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS) was also used. Results The findings showed that 60.3% of Poles had experienced at least one PTE and 31.1% of those who had been exposed to trauma reported symptoms of PTSD. At the level of the entire sample, the obtained rate for probable PTSD was 18.8%. The traumatic events with the highest probabilities of PTSD symptoms were child abuse and sexual assault. Levels of life satisfaction were significantly lower in the group of participants with probable PTSD. Conclusions We found that the current prevalence of probable PTSD in Poland is intriguingly high relative to rates reported in comparable representative samples from other countries across the world. Possible mechanisms are discussed, including a lack of social acknowledgement of WWII and other traumas as well as poor access to trauma-focused care. We hope that this research may inspire more studies investigating cross-national differences in PTSD and trauma exposure.

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Knowledge about traumatic World War II experiences among ancestors and subjective well-being of young adults: A person-centred perspective

Cited by 6 publications

References 35 publications

Long-lasting effects of World War II trauma on PTSD symptoms and embodiment levels in a national sample of Poles

Long-lasting effects of World War II trauma on PTSD symptoms and embodiment levels in a national sample of Poles

Posljedice neizrečenoga i zašto se skriveno mora saznati

Exposure to self-reported traumatic events and probable PTSD in a national sample of Poles: Why does Poland’s PTSD prevalence differ from other national estimates?

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