The Role of Parental Posttraumatic Stress, Marital Adjustment, and Dyadic Self-Disclosure in Intergenerational Transmission of Trauma: A Family System Approach

The Role of Parental Posttraumatic Stress, Marital Adjustment, and Dyadic Self-Disclosure in Intergenerational Transmission of Trauma: A Family System Approach

Psychology

Rahel Bachem, Yafit Levin, Xiao Zhou, Gadi Zerach, Zahava Solomon

Journal of Marital and Family Therapy

Vol. 44

No. 3

2018

American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy

Journal article

English

Restricted Access

Research indicates that posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) induced by war trauma may be transmitted to veterans’ wives and offspring (secondary traumatic stress; STS). However, the interplay between family members’ characteristics has not been accounted for in such processes. Taking a family systems perspective, we examine the contributions of fathers’ PTSS, mothers’ STS, marital adjustment, and self-disclosure of both parents to offspring's STS and test whether marital quality applies as a mechanism of parent–child transmission. Combat veterans and former prisoners of war (N = 123), their spouses, and adult offspring were investigated in a multiple-step mediation analysis. The results highlight the mother's crucial role in trauma transmission and suggest that strengthening the marital relationship may buffer the transmission of fathers’ PTSS to offspring.

Kristen Walker