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Objective/Background: Despite increasing attention on transgenerational trauma, currently no comprehensive model and measure exists to be applied on various populations. This study represents the first step in the validation of such a model and a related scale. The Historical Intergenerational Trauma Questionnaire (HITT-Q) assesses family and offspring self-reported vulnerability and resilience, as well as offspring historical moral injury and current levels of insidious trauma. Method: We developed the HITT-Q based on the cross-population model (HITT model; [Starrs, C. & Békés, V. (2024). Historical and transgenerational trauma: A conceptual framework. Traumatology. In Press]) which incorporates key findings in existing population specific studies. For initial validation of the model and its measurement, Holocaust survivors’ offspring (N = 1104) completed the HITT-Q, measures of current mental health symptoms (PTSD, C-PTSD, anxiety, and depression), and a resilience scale. Results: In line with the HITT model, confirmatory factor analyses supported a 12-factor solution with the following factors under theorized dimensions: I. Family Vulnerability: (1) Dysregulated and Trauma-related Communication; (2)Trauma-influenced Parenting, (3) Fear; (4) Distress; II. (5) Family Resilience, III. Offspring Vulnerability: (6) Escape; (7) Heightened Responsibility; (8) Trauma-related distress; IV. Offspring Resilience: (9) Coping; (10) Belonging; (11) Values; V. (12) Historical Moral injury. The 12-factor model showed acceptable to good internal validity, and comparison with an existing measure of transgenerational Holocaust trauma indicated good concurrent validity. Finally, the HITT-Q demonstrated predictive validity for mental health symptoms and current resilience. Conclusions: The current study represents the first step in validating the HITT-Q as a comprehensive measure of historical intergenerational vulnerability and resilience. Our findings provide strong support for the underlying model, and suggest that the HITT-Q represents a valuable scale for both research and historical trauma-informed care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Defense mechanisms are adaptative processes that are related to mental health and psychological functioning and may play an important role in adaptation to distress, as well as in mental health interventions. The present study aimed to compare the use of defense mechanisms and their relationship to mental health symptoms across six countries. In a large-scale descriptive study, we collected data from community- based individuals (N=19,860) in the United States, Australia, Canada, Germany, Italy, and the United Kingdom about the use of defense mechanisms and experienced mental health symptoms during the early phase of the pandemic. We found that the use of defense mechanism categories was similar across countries. Moreover, lower defensive functioning, specifically, neurotic and immature defenses were related to experiencing higher distress across countries, whereas mature defenses were generally inversely related to symptoms. Furthermore, these findings were relatively similar across the six countries. Cross-cultural research on defense mechanisms and mental health has important clinical implications. Our results are consistent with the goal of promoting more adaptive defensive functioning to increase psychological well-being and mitigate the detrimental impact of situational stress [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current study tested the vulnerability and sex differences hypotheses of the response styles theory of depression (Nolen-Hoeksema, 1991). Participants included 494 tenth-grade students (M = 15.25 years, SD = 0.47) recruited from two secondary schools in Beijing, China. Participants completed self-report measures assessing rumination and neuroticism as well as a semistructured clinical interview assessing current and past clinically significant depressive episodes. Higher levels of rumination were associated with a greater likelihood of exhibiting both a current depressive episode and a past history of depressive episodes even after controlling for neuroticism. Higher levels of rumination were also associated with greater severity and duration of current depressive episodes and greater severity of past depressive episodes even after controlling for neuroticism. Contrary to the sex differences hypothesis of the response styles theory, girls and boys did not differ in levels of rumination. (Contains 3 tables and 1 footnote.)

Stress generation is a process in which individuals, through their depressive symptoms, personal characteristics, and/or behaviors, contribute to the occurrence of stressful life events. While this process has been well documented in adults, few studies have examined it in children. The present study examines whether cognitive and interpersonal vulnerability factors to depression contribute to stress generation in children, independent of their current depressive symptoms. Participants included 140 children (ages 6 to 14) and one of their parents. During an initial assessment, children completed self-report measures assessing cognitive and interpersonal vulnerability factors to depression. Children and their parents also completed measures assessing depressive symptoms. One year later, children and their parents participated in a semi-structured interview assessing the occurrence of stressful life events in the past year. Multi-level modeling results provided strong support for the stress generation process in children of affectively ill parents and highlight the importance of considering gender and age moderation effects.

In a world where genocides and wars are constant reality, understanding the long-term psychological impact of massive trauma on survivors, as well as identifying ways to promote resilience among them are crucial. Research has repeatedly demonstrated Holocaust survivors' remarkable capacity to live with horrible memories and still function well; however, the exact nature of defensive and coping processes that allowed this have remained mostly unclear. The present study aims to address this question by identifying Coping Action Patterns in survivors' Holocaust (HN) versus other, pre- and post-Holocaust (ON) narratives. We analyzed 169 thematic units in 20 in-depth interviews with Holocaust survivors using a sequential explanatory mixed-method approach. We found that the proportion of adaptive coping patterns was higher in HN compared to ON, and that the coping category Relatedness, as well as specific individual coping strategies: Self-Reliance, Escape, and Information Seeking occurred more frequently in HN compared to ON, although none of these differences reached statistical significance. A modified interpretative phenomenological approach was used to identify common themes within each coping strategy. The results implicate that maintaining a dual representation of trauma versus regular, non-traumatic autobiographic memories may play a crucial role in the resilience of massive trauma survivors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite many theoretical and clinical writings, the theorized connection between defense mechanisms and adult attachment in depressed patients has received little empirical attention. This is the first study to examine patients' defense mechanisms in relation to their attachment in a clinical sample of depressed patients and also the first to use observer-rated measures for assessing both defense mechanisms and attachment. In this pilot study, we aimed to investigate the relationship between patients' attachment and their use of defense mechanisms in psychotherapy sessions, as well as patterns of change over treatment. We conducted a secondary analysis of data from a randomized controlled trial of 30 patients receiving psychotherapy for major depression. Session transcripts were previously coded for defense mechanisms using the Defense Mechanisms Rating Scales, and depression severity data were collected by the clinician-rated HRSD-17 and the self-report BDI-II. Patients' attachment was assessed in two transcripts, one in an early session and a second in a late session, using the novel observer-rated Patient Attachment Coding System. In contrast with expectations, in the early phase of therapy, preoccupied attachment-related characteristics were significantly positively related to overall defensive functioning and negatively related to Depressive immature defenses. In the late phase of treatment, preoccupied attachment-related characteristics were negatively correlated with Non-depressive immature defenses. Moreover, as expected, early-phase defense use was related to late phase attachment; specifically, early neurotic and immature Depressive and Non-depressive defenses predicted an increase in avoidant, whereas immature Non-depressive defenses predicted a decrease in preoccupied attachment-related characteristics over the course of treatment, after controlling for early attachment effects. The results imply a longitudinal relationship between defenses and change in attachment-related characteristics over the course of treatment in a depressed sample and warrant further research about the relationship between defenses and attachment during psychotherapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study of 152 community adults examined whether perfectionism interacts with daily perceived control to predict depressive and anxious symptoms over 4 years. Participants completed measures of higher-order perfectionism dimensions [self-critical (SC), personal standards (PS)] and neuroticism at time 1, daily diaries for 14 consecutive days to assess perceived control over most bothersome events at time 2 three years later, and measures of depressive and anxious symptoms at time 1, time 2, and time 3 four years after baseline. Hierarchical regression analyses of moderator effects demonstrated that individuals with higher SC perfectionism at time 1 and lower perceived control across daily stressors at time 2 had higher levels of depressive symptoms at time 3 than others, adjusting for the effects of time 1 and time 2 depressive and anxious symptoms. Higher SC perfectionism also interacted with lower perceived control to predict time 3 anxious symptoms. PS perfectionism and neuroticism did not interact with perceived control to predict time 3 depressive or anxious symptoms. These findings highlight the importance of addressing cognitive appraisals of one's control over handling daily stressors for the prevention and treatment of depressive and anxious symptoms in individuals with higher SC perfectionism. Public Significance Statement: This study demonstrates that individuals with higher self-critical perfectionism are vulnerable to depressive and anxious symptoms over the longer-term when these individuals have lower perceived control over daily stressors. The findings highlight the importance of considering self-critical perfectionism and daily perceived control in the prevention and treatment of depression and anxiety. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Maladaptive coping has been shown to be related to increased symptoms of distress and lower levels of well-being, whereas the use of adaptive coping has been shown to diminish distress and improve functioning. This suggests that change in coping may constitute a significant mechanism of change in psychotherapy. Utilizing a novel observer-rating method for assessing coping, the current report examined changes in overall coping functioning (OCF) in three participants with diverse personality disorders who were undergoing two different types of psychotherapy (cognitive-behavioral therapy and dynamic therapy) for recurrent major depression. Results showed that overall coping functioning improved in two cases and remained stable in a third. Preliminary findings, based on a detailed examination of changes in specific coping patterns, suggest that improvement may differ according to severity of personality pathology. As hypothesized, coping improved in both types of psychotherapy. Thus, overall results suggest that coping may constitute an important general mechanism of change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is extensive literature examining the psychological adaptation of survivors after the Holocaust, including studies of Holocaust narratives (HN). As a measure of psychological adaptation, defense mechanisms (DM) have been studied in various clinical samples, however, to date, not in Holocaust narratives. Using a standardized observer-rated measure, we assessed DM in Holocaust versus pre/post Holocaust narratives (other narratives [ON]) in 20 in-depth survivor interviews. Regarding individual DM, isolation of affect and self-assertion were statistically more frequent in the HN than the ON. High adaptive (mature) level defenses were more frequent in the HNs than the ON. Furthermore, the overall defensive functioning (ODF) was higher in the HN than the ON, contradicting previous findings showing lower defensive functioning in life-threatening situations. Possible explanations include differences in the nature of trauma, the time elapsed between the trauma and the interview, and the specificity of the sample. A qualitative overview with several examples from the narratives are also presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current study examined several theories of depression in a sample of middle adolescents. At Time 1, 367 ninth graders completed measures assessing depressogenic inferential styles, the tendency to ruminate in response to depressed mood, and depressive symptoms. Six weeks later, participants completed measures assessing negative events and depressive symptoms. In line with the hopelessness theory, a depressogenic weakest link interacted with negative events to predict increases in hopelessness depression symptoms but not in more general depressive symptoms. Further, providing partial support for the response styles theory, the tendency to ruminate in response to depressed mood predicted increases in hopelessness depression symptoms but not in more general depressive symptoms. Contrary to the integrative theory, the relationship between a depressogenic weakest link and increases in hopelessness depression symptoms following negative events was not moderated by a ruminative response style. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current study examined whether excessive reassurance seeking serves as a vulnerability factor to depressive symptoms in a sample of children of affectively ill parents using a multiwave longitudinal design and experience sampling methodology. In addition, we examined whether self-esteem moderates the association between excessive reassurance seeking and increases in depressive symptoms following increases in negative events. At Time 1, 56 children (ages 7--14) completed measures assessing excessive reassurance seeking, low self--esteem, and depressive symptoms. Subsequently, children were given a handheld personal computer (HP Jornada 690), which signaled them to complete measures assessing depressive symptoms and negative events at six randomly selected times over an 8--week follow--up interval. In line with hypotheses, higher levels of reassurance seeking were associated with greater increases in depressive symptoms following increases in negative events. Contrary to hypotheses, however, the strength of this association was not moderated by self--esteem. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The intergenerational impact of genocide has been studied in various contexts, however, the mechanisms of trauma transmission remain unclear. The present study aimed to better understand the relationship between parental trauma and offspring mental health by exploring mechanisms of trauma transmission in the children ( n = 599) and grandchildren ( n = 311) of Holocaust survivors (HS) in Hungary. In a cross-sectional online survey study, we used the paradigm developed by Danieli, Norris, Lindert, Paisner, Engdahl, et al. (2015) and Danieli, Norris, Lindert, Paisner, Kronenberg, et al. (2015) to assess HS parental styles (i.e., parenting impacted by efforts to cope with past traumatic experiences), as reported by offspring participants, as well as participants' reported level of adaptational impact, that is, their efforts to cope and adapt, and current mental health symptoms posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD, complex PTSD [C-PTSD], anxiety, depression). We found differences in parental styles reported by generation; however, the mechanism of how it impacted offspring mental health was similar. Mediation analyses showed that more intense parental styles were associated with higher adaptational impact, which, in turn, was related to more mental health symptoms, in both generations. This is the first study to apply the Danieli paradigm in a third-generation sample and the first to assess the psychological impact of the Holocaust in an Eastern European country (Hungary), using systematic quantitative assessment. Our findings highlight the Holocaust's continued impact on the third generation, and the importance of raising awareness of the impact of collective traumas through educational programs, enhancing culturally sensitive and transgenerational trauma-informed mental health services, and fostering tolerance and diversity in public policy. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Defense mechanisms are adaptative processes that are related to mental health and psychological functioning and may play an important role in adaptation to distress, as well as in mental health interventions. The present study aimed to compare the use of defense mechanisms and their relationship to mental health symptoms across six countries. In a large-scale descriptive study, we collected data from community- based individuals (N=19,860) in the United States, Australia, Canada, Germany, Italy, and the United Kingdom about the use of defense mechanisms and experienced mental health symptoms during the early phase of the pandemic. We found that the use of defense mechanism categories was similar across countries. Moreover, lower defensive functioning, specifically, neurotic and immature defenses were related to experiencing higher distress across countries, whereas mature defenses were generally inversely related to symptoms. Furthermore, these findings were relatively similar across the six countries. Cross-cultural research on defense mechanisms and mental health has important clinical implications. Our results are consistent with the goal of promoting more adaptive defensive functioning to increase psychological well-being and mitigate the detrimental impact of situational stress.

Objective: It has been broadly anticipated that COVID-19 pandemic-related experiences may constitute traumatic stressors, and that older adults' might be especially at risk of experiencing mental health symptoms during the pandemic. The present study aimed to examine older adults' psychological distress: posttraumatic stress, Covid-related fears, anxiety, and depression during the pandemic, and the relationship between present distress, defensive functioning, and childhood trauma. We also explored potential differences between older adults (between 65 and 74 years), and older-older adults (75 years and above)., Method: A large-scale online survey was conducted during the early months of the pandemic, for the present study, we included participants above 65 years old (N = 1,225) mainly from the United States and Canada., Results: Results showed that age, adverse childhood experiences, and overall defensive functioning were significantly related to posttraumatic stress, anxiety, and depression. Specifically, younger age and more reported childhood adversity were related to higher distress, whereas the use of more adaptive defenses was related to less distress. Covid-related fears were not associated with age. Our final model showed that defensive functioning mediated the relationship between childhood trauma and distress., Conclusions: Our results support the relative resilience of older-older adults compared to older adults, as well as the long-lasting impact of childhood adversity through defensive functioning later in life, specifically in times of heightened stress, such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Future studies are warranted to identify further factors affecting defensive functioning as adults age, as well as processes that are associated with resilience in response to stressors in older adulthood. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).