Collective in exile: Utilizing terror management theory to understand women's wailing performance

Although women's wailing at death rites in various cultures typically amplifies mortality salience, this ritual phenomenon is absent in the research literature on terror management theory (TMT). This study explored Yemenite-Jewish wailing in Israel as an example of how a traditional performance manages death anxiety in a community context. Observations of wailing events and interviews with Yemenite-Jewish wailers and mourners in Israel were analyzed to understand respondents' perceptions of the experience of wailing as well as the anxiety-oriented psychotherapeutic expertise involved. The findings are discussed to propose an alternative outlook on the intersubjective adaptive value of death anxiety. After describing TMT's view on the role of culture in coping with death anxiety, I consider the extent to which Yemenite-Jewish wailing is consistent with the premises of TMT.

The impact of political violence on psychosocial functioning of individuals and families: the case of palestinian adolescents

BACKGROUND

  The impact of political violence on the psychosocial functioning of adolescents and their families was compared for surveyed populations from two regions of Palestine.

METHOD

  A randomly-selected sample of 971 adolescents (521 from the West Bank and 450 from the Gaza Strip regions, 42% male/57% female) completed scales measuring traumatic event, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), peer relations, mental health, aggression, and family functioning.

RESULTS

  (1) West Bank participants reported a significantly higher level of exposure to political violence and significantly more aggression, mental health symptoms, problems in family and social functioning; (2) Participants exposed to greater political violence reported higher levels of depression, hostility, paranoid ideation, and PTSD; (3) Economic status and level of parental education were related to reduced levels of mental health symptoms and greater family functioning; (4) There were gendered differences.

CONCLUSIONS

  The study provides a starting point to begin to compare the experiences and outcomes between Palestinian adolescents in the West Bank and Gaza Strip and a basis for considering implications for service delivery and policy makers concerned with the well being of Palestinian communities.

Exposure to conflict and violence across contexts: relations to adjustment among Palestinian children

Despite extensive literatures on the impact on children of exposure to violence in families, neighborhoods, and peer groups, there has been relatively little effort evaluating their cumulative impact. There also has been less attention to the effects of exposure to political conflict and violence. We collected data from a representative sample of 600 Palestinian youths (3 age cohorts: 8, 11, and 14 years old) to evaluate the relation of exposure to political conflict and violence, and violence in the family, community, and school, to posttraumatic stress (PTS) symptoms and aggressive behavior. Results highlight the additive effects of exposure to political conflict and violence, suggesting that interventionists should consider the full spectrum of sources of environmental risk for PTS symptoms and aggressive behavior.

Evaluation of individual and group grief and trauma interventions for children post disaster

This study evaluated a community-based grief and trauma intervention for children conducted postdisaster. Fifty six children (7 to 12 years old) who reported moderate to severe levels of symptoms of posttraumatic stress were randomly assigned to group or individual treatment. Treatment consisted of a manualized 10-session grief- and trauma-focused intervention and a parent meeting. Measures of disaster-related exposure, posttraumatic stress symptoms, depression, traumatic grief, and distress were administered at preintervention, postintervention, and 3 weeks postintervention. There was a significant decrease in all outcome measures over time, and there were no differences in outcomes between children who participated in group intervention and those who participated in individual intervention. Results suggest that this intervention using either treatment modality may be effective for addressing childhood grief and trauma postdisaster.

“Wailing Lore” in a Yemenite–Israeli community: Bereavement, expertise, and therapy

This study explores Yemenite-Jewish wailing as an example of how a traditional community copes with bereavement in contemporary Israel. Observations of wailing events and interviews with Yemenite-Israeli wailers and mourners are analyzed in order to understand the respondents' perceptions of wailing as a psychotherapeutic expertise and experience. These findings are further used to substantiate a theoretical reconsideration of models of bereavement, exploring the interplay between the modern, self-centered, and detached psychological model (the "clinical lore") and the traditional, other-oriented, and continuous anthropological model (the "wailing lore"). The article concludes by discussing criticisms of the Western psychotherapeutic paradigm as it relates to bereavement and asking where a mourning ritual such as wailing fits into our understanding of the subjective experiences of grief.