intergenerational cycles of trauma and violence

Databases including PubMed, CINAHL Complete, Proquest, and Scopus were searched using the keywords trauma, social work, violence, resilience, historical, genetic, intergenerational, transmission, perinatal, mental health, and psychopathology. Methods: This presentation is based on a systematic review and synthesis of extant literature on intergenerational trauma from a wide array of sources. It addresses the known mechanisms through which parental traumatic stress may be recapitulated in the developmental outcomes of children, which can result in two generations that: i) endure elevated levels of stress ii) experience violence in its many forms – emotional, physical, sexual, or structural iii) develop higher rates of adverse behavioral health outcomes and iv) are disproportionally affected by poverty, oppression, and discrimination.

This presentation examines the contrasting roles of additive genetic, common environmental, and unique environmental pathways that link parental trauma and early infant mental health. A nuanced understanding of the mechanisms by which violence, trauma, and its correlates may be passed down from caregivers to infants provides an important context for devising interventions to promote resiliency and disrupt a cycle of transgenerational violence. Background and Purpose: Emerging research on trauma and epigenetics within social work has led to observations about the role of genetics in the intergenerational transmission of violence and trauma.

Intergenerational cycles of trauma and violence