From Demonization to Identification: How Parents Who Lost Children in Terrorist Attacks Perceive the Attacker

Posttraumatic Growth in Women who have Experienced Loss of a Child

PURPOSE

The purpose of this study was to describe and explore the experiences of women who have lost a child and the degree of posttraumatic growth revealed by the experiences.

STUDY DESIGN AND METHOD

A qualitative descriptive study was conducted with interviews of mothers and grandmothers of children who died using the posttraumatic growth framework.

FINDINGS

Participants included 11 mothers and 2 grandmothers. The posttraumatic growth framework was useful in examining their experiences. Seven themes were identified through data analysis: When my child died, I lost part of myself; Anticipated loss versus unanticipated loss; Picking up the pieces of my life; Support, kindness, and compassion helped; Moving on while still broken; Never forgotten, always in my heart; and Holding my loved ones close.

CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS

Nurses are in strategic positions to help women who have experienced the loss of a child by building rapport, establishing trust, and demonstrating empathy.

Do Jews and Arabs Differ in Their Fear of Terrorism and Crime?

The current study was carried out with the aim of supplementing the existing literature and broadening the understanding of the determinants of two powerful types of fear, fear of terrorism and fear of crime, by comparing their presence among Jews and Arabs in Israel. Based on an overview of factors influencing fear of victimization, the study focused on individual variables (ethnicity, sex, age, objective, and subjective exposure) as well as on neighborhood disorder and social integration. The sample consisted of 375 Israeli students (191 Jews and 184 Arabs). Predictions of fear of terrorism and crime were conducted with two multiple regressions. Fear of terrorism was significantly predicted by gender (women more than men), higher self exposure to terror, and higher neighborhood disorder. The only interaction found with regard to exposure to incidents showed that previous victimization predicts only fear of terrorism and only among Arabs who were themselves affected or exposed to the victimization of others. Fear of crime was predicted by sector (Jews more than Arabs), gender (women more than men), higher neighborhood disorder, and lower social integration. As far as known, this is the first attempt to examine differences between Jews and Arabs with regard to these two types of fear and to predict their causes. The findings help gain a better understanding as to how people perceive the threat of crime and terrorism, in general and in the Arab-Jewish context in particular. The findings also enable an understanding of the complexity of living under ongoing terrorism threats. The results are discussed in accordance with the literature, concluding with the need for further research that will take into account the wider cultural and social context.

Perception of the Threat of Terrorism

In light of the tense and ongoing security situation in Israel, one important issue that needs to be analyzed and understood is the perception of terrorism threats. Most studies focused mainly on the psychological implications of terrorist acts; this study examines the complexity of the manner in which the individual perceives the threat of terrorism. In all, 40 Israeli adults (22 women and 18 men) were interviewed using semistructured in-depth interviews. Qualitative analysis indicates that the components of the perception of terrorism that construct the evaluation and subjective perception of the participants are as follows: (a) perception of control, which is a feeling of loss of control and helplessness due to uncertainty, inability to predict threats, and the vagueness of the threat; (b) perception of vulnerability to the threat, such as a feeling of vulnerability to and potential victimization by terrorism; and (c) perception of fear of terrorism that includes responses of fear, anxiety, feeling of danger, and emotional distress. In addition, gender differences were found in the analysis. The findings of this study help gain a better understanding as to how people perceive the threat of terrorism. The findings also enable an understanding of the complexity of living under ongoing terrorism threats and may assist in understanding how citizens cope with and adjust to this threat.

Does Fear of Terrorism Differ From Fear of Crime and Sexual Assault: A Question of Geographical Location and Residential Area

The study describes an examination of three types of fear: crime, sexual assault, and terrorism. The sample consisted of 507 adults from three different geographical locations in Israel with different levels of crime and terror attacks. With regard to fear of crime and fear of sexual assault, the results were compatible with the findings of many studies that indicate the effect of residential area features on levels of fear. Fear of terrorism was found to be more complex. The theoretical framework used to assess fear of crime is not fully suitable for assessing and examining fear of terrorism. Other variables should be taken into consideration, such as religion and ideology.

PTSD and PTG among Israeli mothers: Opposite facets of exposure to terrorism

The aim of the this study was to test the association between posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), posttraumatic growth (PTG), and coping strategies among Israeli mothers with prolonged exposure to rocket missiles. One hundred fifty-two mothers, from the Western Negev region of Israel, took part in the study. Respondents were affected by prolonged exposure to missile attacks even when they themselves had not been hit or injured. A positive correlation was found between PTSD and PTG. Problem-focused coping was found to mediate the relationship between PTSD and PTG; the higher the PTSD, the greater the use of problem-focused coping and the greater the posttraumatic growth. The results help understand the association between PTSD and PTG. The finding whereby problem-focused coping mediates the PTSD-PTG relationship is important for comprehending the association between the variables and the significance of growth in human life and for constructing intervention programs that promote growth following trauma. In addition, the study contributes to raising awareness both of how mothers cope and that they are a separate risk group with distinct growth possibilities.

Patterns in response to chronic terrorism threats: A construct of emotional, cognitive, and behavioral responses among Israeli citizens

Israeli citizens are exposed to unpredictable and chronic terrorism threats that significantly jeopardize their personal sense of safety. The purpose of the present study is to present how Israeli discourse is structured with regard to emotional, cognitive, and behavioral responses to chronic terrorism threats and to understand the range of responses as well as map the risk and protective factors of this existential threat. Semistructured in-depth interviews were conducted with 40 Israeli adults (22 women and 18 men). Qualitative analysis revealed three patterns of responses to ongoing terrorism: emotional, cognitive, and behavioral. Emotional responses include fear, worry, sense of empathy, and detachment. Cognitive responses include situational assessment and pursuit of solutions, the use of traumatic imagining, beliefs in fate and luck, and optimism. Behavioral responses include looking for information, alertness, and habituation. The findings also revealed another response, which combines cognitive and behavioral responses. Some of the responses are innovative and unique to the threat of terrorism. Mapping the responses revealed mental health risk factors, as well as protective factors that can help structure personal and national resilience. These findings have implications on the treatment and prevention of personal and social pathologies, and how to effectively cope with terrorism threats.

Holocaust memory reconstruction among bereaved parents

Many studies have examined the trauma bereaved parents experience. The current study focuses on the role that the Holocaust's memory plays in the bereavement experience of parents who have lost a child in a terrorist attack in Israel. Forty bereaved parents were interviewed, using semistructured in-depth interviews. Bereaved parents related to the Holocaust memory as a meaningful experience in their private bereavement. The parents expressed dialectic feelings concerning their loss, personal victimization on the one hand and personal strength, and growth on the other hand. It seems that memory reconstruction of the Holocaust can be used as a coping resource.

Mothers’ Grief, Forgiveness, and Posttraumatic Growth After the Loss of a Child

The aim of this study was to investigate maternal grief after losing a child in relation to forgiveness and posttraumatic growth. A sample of 60 grieving mothers from Slovakia completed the following battery: The Texas Revised Inventory of Grief, a modified version of the Enright Forgiveness Inventory, and the Posttraumatic Growth Inventory. The results showed a negative association between forgiveness and grief and a strong positive association between forgiveness and posttraumatic growth, which was not moderated by the time elapsed since the loss. Semistructured interviews were conducted with 12 mothers. The data were analyzed through Consensual Qualitative Research to gain deeper understanding of forgiveness and posttraumatic growth experiences after the loss of a child. Categories and subcategories are discussed.