Offspring Of Holocaust Survivors Research Articles

Intergenerational Effects of the Holocaust: Subjective Well-Being in the Offspring of Survivors

Offspring of Holocaust survivors have been the subject of much research into how traumatic events affect future generations. This study considers the effects of the Holocaust on the well-being rather than trauma of offspring of Holocaust survivors in Australia. 285 Jewish participants completed a questionnaire to measure components of subjective well-being. Analyses revealed that offspring of Holocaust survivors reported lower general positive mood than non-OHS. This result was limited to offspring of Holocaust survivors with two survivor parents. These findings imply that effects of the Holocaust are transmitted to nonclinical offspring of Holocaust survivors and that the number of survivor parents is a crucial determinant in understanding these transgenerational outcomes.

Transgenerational transmission of trauma and resilience: a qualitative study with Brazilian offspring of Holocaust survivors

BackgroundOver the past five decades, clinicians and researchers have debated the impact of the Holocaust on the children of its survivors. The transgenerational transmission of trauma has been explored in more than 500 articles, which have failed to reach reliable conclusions that could be generalized. The psychiatric literature shows mixed findings regarding this subject: many clinical studies reported psychopathological findings related to transgenerational transmission of trauma and some empirical research has found no evidence of this phenomenon in offspring of Holocaust survivors.MethodThis qualitative study aims to detect how the second generation perceives transgenerational transmission of their parents’ experiences in the Holocaust. In-depth individual interviews were conducted with fifteen offspring of Holocaust survivors and sought to analyze experiences, meanings and subjective processes of the participants. A Grounded Theory approach was employed, and constant comparative method was used for analysis of textual data.ResultsThe development of conceptual categories led to the emergence of distinct patterns of communication from parents to their descendants. The qualitative methodology also allowed systematization of the different ways in which offspring can deal with parental trauma, which determine the development of specific mechanisms of traumatic experience or resilience in the second generation.ConclusionsThe conceptual categories constructed by the Grounded Theory approach were used to present a possible model of the transgenerational transmission of trauma, showing that not only traumatic experiences, but also resilience patterns can be transmitted to and developed by the second generation. As in all qualitative studies, these conclusions cannot be generalized, but the findings can be tested in other contexts.

Transgenerational effects of trauma in midlife: Evidence for resilience and vulnerability in offspring of Holocaust survivors.

Despite abundant research on offspring of Holocaust survivors (OHS), it is relatively unknown how they function in middle age. Transgenerational effects of the Holocaust may be stronger among middle-aged OHS as they previously suffered from early inclement natal and postnatal environment and now face age-related decline. However, middle-aged OHS may successfully maintain the resilience they demonstrated at a younger age. This study performed a wide-spectrum functional assessment of middle-aged OHS and a comparison group (N = 364) drawn from the Israeli component of the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE-Israel). OHS, and especially those with two survivor parents, reported a higher sense of well-being but more physical health problems than the comparison group. The discussion provides possible explanations for this mixed functional profile. (PsycINFO Database Record

Paternal predictors of the mental health of children of Vietnamese refugees

BackgroundIntergenerational transmission of trauma as a determinant of mental health has been studied in the offspring of Holocaust survivors and combat veterans, and in refugee families. Mainly negative effects on the children are reported, while a few studies also describe resilience and a possible positive transformation process. A longitudinal prospective cohort study of Vietnamese refugees arriving in Norway in 1982 reports a 23 years follow-up, including spouses and children born in Norway, to study the long-term effects of trauma, flight, and exile on the offspring of the refugees.Objectives of the study:1. To study the association between the psychological distress of Vietnamese refugee parents and their children after 23 years resettlement.2. To analyse paternal predictors for their children's mental health.MethodsInformation from one or both parents at arrival in 1982 (T1), at follow-up in 1985 (T2), and 23 years after arrival (T3) was included. The mental health was assessed by the Global Severity Index (GSI) of the self-report Symptom Check List-90-R (SCL-90-R) for parents (n = 88) and older children (age 19-23 yrs, n = 12), while children aged 4-18 (n = 94) were assessed using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ).ResultsThirty percent of the families had one parent with a high psychological distress score ("probable caseness" for a mental disorder), while only 4% of the children aged 10 - 23 years were considered as probable cases. In spite of this, there was an association between probable caseness in children and in fathers at T3. A significant negative paternal predictor for the children's mental health at T3 was the father's PTSD at arrival in Norway, while a positive predictor was the father's participation in a Norwegian network three years after arrival.ConclusionsChildren of refugees cannot be globally considered at risk for mental health problems. However, the preceding PTSD in their fathers may constitute a specific risk for them.

Maternal exposure to the holocaust and health complaints in offspring.

Although the link between chronic stress and the development of cardiovascular and metabolic diseases of adulthood has been known for some time, there is growing recognition that early environmental influences may result in developmental programming via epigenetic mechanisms, thereby affecting the developmental trajectory of disease progression. Previous studies support the idea that offspring of Holocaust survivors may have been subjected to early developmental programming. We evaluated the relationship between parental exposure to the Holocaust and self-reported health ratings and disorders made by their adult offspring (i.e., second generation Holocaust survivors). A total of 137 subjects were evaluated. Regression analyses demonstrated that maternal but not paternal exposure to the Holocaust was related to poorer subjective impressions of emotional and physical health. This relationship was diminished when the offspring’s own level of trait anxiety was considered. Offspring with maternal, but not paternal, Holocaust exposure also reported greater use of psychotropic and other medications, including medications for the treatment of hypertension and lipid disorders. The mechanism linking these health outcomes and maternal exposure deserves further investigation, including the possibility that fetal or early developmental programming is involved.

Maternal Exposure to the Holocaust and Health Complaints in Offspring

Although the link between chronic stress and the development of cardiovascular and metabolic diseases of adulthood has been known for some time, there is growing recognition that early environmental influences may result in developmental programming via epigenetic mechanisms, thereby affecting the developmental trajectory of disease progression. Previous studies support the idea that offspring of Holocaust survivors may have been subjected to early developmental programming. We evaluated the relationship between parental exposure to the Holocaust and self-reported health ratings and disorders made by their adult offspring (i.e., second generation Holocaust survivors). A total of 137 subjects were evaluated. Regression analyses demonstrated that maternal but not paternal exposure to the Holocaust was related to poorer subjective impressions of emotional and physical health. This relationship was diminished when the offspring’s own level of trait anxiety was considered. Offspring with maternal, but not paternal, Holocaust exposure also reported greater use of psychotropic and other medications, including medications for the treatment of hypertension and lipid disorders. The mechanism linking these health outcomes and maternal exposure deserves further investigation, including the possibility that fetal or early developmental programming is involved.

Coping in old age with extreme childhood trauma: Aging Holocaust survivors and their offspring facing new challenges

Objective: The Holocaust has become an iconic example of immense human-made catastrophes, and survivors are now coping with normal aging processes. Childhood trauma may leave the survivors more vulnerable when they are facing stress related to old age, whereas their offspring might have a challenging role of protecting their own parents from further pain. Here we examine the psychological adaptation of Holocaust survivors and their offspring in light of these new challenges, examining satisfaction with life, mental health, cognitive abilities, dissociative symptoms, and physical health. Methods: Careful matching of female Holocaust survivors and comparison subjects living in Israel was employed to form a case-control study design with two generations, including four groups: 32 elderly female Holocaust survivors and 47 daughters, and 33 elderly women in the comparison group, and 32 daughters (total N = 174). Participants completed several measures of mental and physical health, and their cognitive functioning was examined. The current study is a follow-up of a previous study conducted 11 years ago with the same participants. Results: Holocaust survivors showed more dissociative symptomatology (odds = 2.39) and less satisfaction with their life (odds = 2.79) as compared to a matched group. Nonetheless, adult offspring of Holocaust survivors showed no differences in their physical, psychological, and cognitive functioning as compared to matched controls. Conclusions: Holocaust survivors still display posttraumatic stress symptoms almost 70 years after the trauma, whereas no intergenerational transmission of trauma was found among the second generation.

The Long-Term Effects of Extreme War-Related Trauma on the Second Generation of Holocaust Survivors

The psychological consequences of intergenerational trauma on the second generation of Holocaust survivors were studied in a sample of 40 nonimmigrant Italian Jews and compared to a control group. Differences between offspring of Holocaust survivors (HSO) and a comparison group were assessed by the Adjective Check List, Anxiety Questionnaire Scale, Defence Mechanism Inventory, and Family Environment Scale. Although the HSO displayed no serious psychological consequences, they had higher anxiety levels than controls, low self-esteem, inhibition of aggression, and relational ambivalence. These data partially confirm previous research on the topic, although the level of psychological distress seems to be lower in the Italian sample than in other samples of second-generation Holocaust survivors.

Maternal, not paternal, PTSD is related to increased risk for PTSD in offspring of Holocaust survivors

Background A significant association between parental PTSD and the occurrence of PTSD in offspring has been noted, consistent with the idea that risk for the development of PTSD is transmitted from parent to child. Two recent reports linking maternal PTSD and low offspring cortisol prompted us to examine the relative contributions of maternal vs. paternal PTSD in the prediction of PTSD and other psychiatric diagnoses in offspring. Methods One hundred seventeen men and 167 women, recruited from the community, were evaluated using a comprehensive psychiatric battery designed to identify traumatic life experiences and lifetime psychiatric diagnoses. 211 of these subjects were the adult offspring of Holocaust survivors and 73 were demographically comparable Jewish controls. Participants were further subdivided based on whether their mother, father, neither, or both parents met diagnostic criteria for lifetime PTSD. Results A higher prevalence of lifetime PTSD, mood, anxiety disorders, and to a lesser extent, substance abuse disorders, was observed in offspring of Holocaust survivors than controls. The presence of maternal PTSD was specifically associated with PTSD in adult offspring of Holocaust survivors. However, other psychiatric diagnoses did not show specific effects associated with maternal PTSD. Conclusion The tendency for maternal PTSD to make a greater contribution than paternal PTSD to PTSD risk suggests that classic genetic mechanisms are not the sole model of transmission, and paves way for the speculation that epigenetic factors may be involved. In contrast, PTSD in any parent contributes to risk for depression, and parental traumatization is associated with increased anxiety disorders in offspring.

On failed intersubjectivity: Recollections of loneliness experiences in offspring of Holocaust survivors.

Intergenerational consequences of extensive trauma experienced by parents for the loneliness experienced by their children were explored in 52 adults (26 men and 26 women) who grew up in Holocaust survivor families. These adults, children of mothers who had survived Nazi concentration camps, were recruited from a random nonclinical Israeli sample. A narrative analysis of their recollected accounts of loneliness in childhood and adolescence yielded 4 major categories of loneliness experiences in the context of growing up in Holocaust survivor families: (a) echoes of parental intrusive traumatic memories; (b) echoes of parental numbing and detachment; (c) perceived parents' caregiving style; and (d) social comparison with other families, in particular the lack of grandparents. The echoes of the parental trauma in the recollected loneliness accounts are conceptualized as representing a sense of failed intersubjectivity in these interpersonal processes. The experiences of not being understood by others, not understanding others, and the lack of shared understanding involved in failed intersubjectivity are discussed and related to the importance of opening lines of communication between survivors and their descendents.

Parental Posttraumatic Stress Disorder as a Vulnerability Factor for Low Cortisol Trait in Offspring of Holocaust Survivors

Lower cortisol levels in posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) may reflect a preexisting vulnerability associated with developing the disorder after trauma exposure. Because offspring of trauma survivors with PTSD have a greater prevalence of PTSD after their own life events than offspring of trauma survivors without PTSD and offspring of nonexposed persons, examination of patterns of basal cortisol secretion in such offspring provides an opportunity to test this hypothesis. To characterize the patterns of basal cortisol secretion in offspring of Holocaust survivors with and without parental PTSD and children of nonexposed parents. Cortisol secretion was measured every 30 minutes for 24 hours. The raw hormonal data were subjected to a chronobiological analysis by applying single-oscillator and multioscillator cosinor analyses, a nonlinear least squares curve-fitting program, to determine circadian and ultradian regulatory dynamics. The study was conducted under controlled conditions at the General Clinical Research Center at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine. Twenty-three Holocaust offspring with parental PTSD and 10 without parental PTSD were compared with 16 children of nonexposed parents. No participant had PTSD. Mean cortisol levels during the 24-hour cycle and other chronobiological parameters (amplitude, acrophase, circadian quotient, and goodness-of-fit coefficient) derived from single-oscillator and multioscillator models. Offspring with parental PTSD displayed lower mean cortisol levels, reflected by the circadian mesor and reduced cortisol amplitude, compared with offspring without parental PTSD and children of nonexposed parents. This effect seemed to be specifically related to the presence of maternal PTSD. Low cortisol levels and other chronobiological alterations in offspring are associated with the risk factor of maternal PTSD, raising the possibility that these alterations are acquired via glucocorticoid programming either from in utero exposures or in response to maternal behaviors early in life.

Long-term effects of trauma: Psychosocial functioning of the second and third generation of Holocaust survivors

The long-term effects of extreme war-related trauma on the second and the third generation of Holocaust survivors (HS) were examined in 88 middle-class families. Differences in functioning between adult offspring of HS (HSO) and a comparison group, as well as the psychosocial functioning of adolescent grandchildren of HS, were studied. Degree of presence of Holocaust in the family was examined in families in which both parents were HSO, either mother or father was HSO, and neither parent was HSO. Mothers' Holocaust background was associated with higher levels of psychological distress and less positive parenting representations. In line with synergic (multiplicative) models of risk, adolescents in families where both parents were HSO perceived their mothers as less accepting and less encouraging independence, and reported less positive self-perceptions than their counterparts. They also perceived their fathers as less accepting and less encouraging independence, showed higher levels of ambivalent attachment style, and according to their peers, demonstrated poorer adjustment during military basic training than their fellow recruits from the one-parent HSO group. Parents and adolescents in the one-parent HSO group functioned similarly to others with no Holocaust background. Parenting variables mediated the association across generations between degree of Holocaust experience in the family of origin of the parents and ambivalent attachment style and self-perception of the adolescents. It is recommended that researchers and clinicians develop awareness of the possible traces of trauma in the second and the third generation despite their sound functioning in their daily lives.

Effects of Parental PTSD on the Cortisol Response to Dexamethasone Administration in Their Adult Offspring

Objective: The authors used a low-dose dexamethasone suppression test to examine the effect of a PTSD risk factor, parental PTSD, on cortisol negative feedback inhibition in adult offspring of Holocaust survivors with PTSD (N=13) versus without PTSD (N=12) as well as a comparison group of offspring whose parents had no Holocaust exposure (N=16). Method: Blood samples were obtained at 8:00 a.m. for the determination of baseline cortisol. Participants ingested 0.5 mg of dexamethasone at 11:00 p.m., and blood samples were obtained again at 8:00 a.m. the following day. Results: Enhanced cortisol suppression in response to dexamethasone was associated primarily with parental PTSD status, with minimal contribution of subjects’ own trauma-related symptoms. Conclusions: Enhanced cortisol negative feedback inhibition may be associated with PTSD because it is related to the PTSD risk factor of parental PTSD.

Effects of Parental PTSD on the Cortisol Response to Dexamethasone Administration in Their Adult Offspring

The authors used a low-dose dexamethasone suppression test to examine the effect of a PTSD risk factor, parental PTSD, on cortisol negative feedback inhibition in adult offspring of Holocaust survivors with PTSD (N=13) versus without PTSD (N=12) as well as a comparison group of offspring whose parents had no Holocaust exposure (N=16). Blood samples were obtained at 8:00 a.m. for the determination of baseline cortisol. Participants ingested 0.5 mg of dexamethasone at 11:00 p.m., and blood samples were obtained again at 8:00 a.m. the following day. Enhanced cortisol suppression in response to dexamethasone was associated primarily with parental PTSD status, with minimal contribution of subjects' own trauma-related symptoms. Enhanced cortisol negative feedback inhibition may be associated with PTSD because it is related to the PTSD risk factor of parental PTSD.

Are Adult Offspring Reliable Informants About Parental PTSD? A Validation Study

We developed a short questionnaire--Parental PTSD Questionnaire--(PPQ), designed to assess the presence of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms in parents. Fifty-eight adult offspring of Holocaust survivors (23 men and 35 women) completed the questionnaire about a parent who was independently evaluated by a trained clinician using the Clinician Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS). Only 5.2% of the offspring reported, "not knowing" if their parent had experienced 10 or fewer symptoms, while 56.9% provided estimates for all 17 items. There were no significant differences between lifetime frequencies of the individual symptoms as endorsed on the PPQ compared to the CAPS when subjects with completed PPQs were compared with CAPS. Interrater reliability between offspring and clinician was highly significant for each of the items when evaluated separately so as to include data for subjects who endorsed not knowing if a certain symptom had been present. Further studies are warranted to examine the psychometric properties of this measure.

Implications of the Holocaust for eating and weight problems among survivors' offspring: an exploratory study

This paper explores the proposition that Holocaust survivors' experiences of deprivation and trauma influenced the development of eating and weight problems among their offspring. Interviews with 11 adult offspring of Holocaust survivors find 10 subjects with current, and one with past, disordered eating. Moreover, eating and/or weight problems are reported for 12 of their 17 siblings. Interviewees' restrained eating syndromes with low weight appear related to parental emigration from Europe by 1941; overeating syndromes with high weight appear related to parental incarceration in concentration camps. By contrast with other studies, in which parents' embracement of the cultural ideal of thinness contributed to their children's development of disordered eating, this study links Holocaust survivors' personal experiences of deprivation and trauma to their offspring's restrained or overeating patterns. Research and clinical implications for the families of war and genocide survivors are discussed. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and Eating Disorders Association.

Are children of Holocaust survivors less well-adapted? A meta-analytic investigation of secondary traumatization.

H. Keilson (1979) coined the term "sequential traumatization" for the accumulation of traumatic stresses confronting the Holocaust survivors before, during, and after the war. A central question is whether survivors were able to raise their children without transmitting the traumas of their past. Through a series of meta-analyses on 32 samples involving 4,418 participants, we tested the hypothesis of secondary traumatization in Holocaust survivor families. In the set of adequately designed nonclinical studies, no evidence for the influence of the parents' traumatic Holocaust experiences on their children was found. Secondary traumatization emerged only in studies on clinical participants, who were stressed for other reasons. A stress-diathesis model is used to interpret the absence of secondary traumatization in nonclinical offspring of Holocaust survivors.

Parental communication of Holocaust experiences and interpersonal patterns in offspring of Holocaust survivors

This study examined the interpersonal problems and central relationship patterns of Holocaust Survivors’ Offspring (HSO) who were characterised by different patterns of parental communication of their parents’ Holocaust trauma. Fifty-six adults born to mothers who were survivors of Nazi concentration camps and 54 adults born to parents who immigrated to Israel before 1939 with their own parents (non-HSO) were recruited randomly from an Israeli sample. While the groups did not differ in their current mental health, HSO who reported nonverbal communication with little information about their mother’s trauma endorsed more interpersonal distress than HSO who experienced informative verbal communication and less affiliation than either HSO who experienced informative verbal communication or non-HSO. They also differed in their central relationship patterns with their parents and spouses. The findings are discussed in the context of the unique dynamics of growing up with the silent presence of the mother’s trauma.

Assessing dissociation as a risk factor for posttraumatic stress disorder: a study of adult offspring of holocaust survivors.

Dissociative symptoms are frequently present in trauma survivors with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). However, the possibility that dissociative symptoms may comprise a risk factor for the development of PTSD has not been examined. The current research investigates this possibility by evaluating dissociative symptoms in a group of adult offspring of Holocaust survivors, whom we have previously shown to be at increased risk of PTSD. Eighty-seven Holocaust survivor offspring and 39 comparison participants completed the Dissociative Experiences Scale, and assessments of trauma exposure, psychopathology, and parental PTSD. Dissociative symptoms were elevated in individuals with current PTSD, but not in those with past PTSD or with the risk factor of parental PTSD. Dissociative symptoms were also associated with forms of psychopathology other than PTSD. The results suggest that dissociative symptoms are related to current psychiatric symptomatology, including PTSD, rather than representing an enduring trait or preexisting risk factor for the development of PTSD.

Cortisol levels in adult offspring of Holocaust survivors: relation to PTSD symptom severity in the parent and child.

We have previously demonstrated lower mean 24-h urinary cortisol excretion in adult offspring of Holocaust survivors with parental posttraumatic stress disorder (and lifetime PTSD), compared to offspring without parental PTSD, and to demographically similar comparison subjects. In the current study, we re-analyze data from our previously published report, plus four new subjects, to further examine the relationship between cortisol and severity of PTSD symptoms in offspring and their parents. We also examine the contribution of current depressive disorder to cortisol levels. Two-way analysis of variance revealed lifetime PTSD to be associated with significantly lower cortisol levels, while depressive disorder was associated with higher cortisol levels. The presence of parental PTSD was associated with lower cortisol excretion in the offspring only if both parents were affected. There were significant negative correlations between severity of parental PTSD and offspring urinary cortisol excretion, and between severity of offspring PTSD symptoms and urinary cortisol levels. The findings amplify our earlier descriptions of children of Holocaust survivors with PTSD as a sample 'at risk' for PTSD by demonstrating relationships between lowered cortisol excretion in these offspring and their experience of their parents' PTSD symptoms.