The transgenerational transmission of refugee trauma: family functioning and children’s psychosocial adjustment

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore the role of family functioning in the transgenerational transmission of trauma in a sample of 30 refugee families with traumatized parents and children without a history of direct trauma exposure from the Middle East. Design/methodology/approach Based on qualitative analyses of interview material, families were evaluated using theoretically derived dimensions of family functioning and placed in descriptive categories according to family cohesion, family flexibility, family roles, family coping, stressor pile-up, and marital problems. The association between these descriptive categories of family functioning and the child’s mental health as measured by the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) was explored using point-biserial correlations, correlations, and multiple regression analyses. Findings In all, 22 percent of the variance in children’s SDQ scores could be predicted by whether or not the family experienced a pile-up of stressors and whether or not the family was characterized by role reversal between parents and children. Furthermore, a statically significant association was established between a total measure of adaptive family functioning and lower scores on the SDQ. Originality/value These findings suggest that the transgenerational transmission of trauma may be associated with family functioning and have implications for interventions at several levels.