Letzter-Pouw Sonia, Werner Perla
School of Social Work, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel.
Isr J Psychiatry Relat Sci. 2005;42(4):271-7.
Although intrusive memories and avoidance of memories are psychological phenomena frequently reported by Holocaust survivors, their correlates have not been systematically researched. The present cross-sectional study examined socio-demographic and health characteristics of elderly Holocaust survivors, as well as the survivors' experiences during the Holocaust. In addition, present distress related to the Holocaust and fear of dying were examined. Results showed that survivors frequently suffered from intrusive memories, but not often from avoidance of memories of the Holocaust. Intrusive memories were strongly associated with present distress from the Holocaust, as well as with self-perceived bad health and fear of dying. These findings suggest that intrusive memories influence survivors' perceptions of life and change the way in which they deal with aging.
尽管侵入性记忆和对记忆的回避是大屠杀幸存者经常报告的心理现象，但它们的相关因素尚未得到系统研究。本横断面研究调查了老年大屠杀幸存者的社会人口学和健康特征，以及他们在大屠杀期间的经历。此外，还研究了与大屠杀相关的当前困扰和对死亡的恐惧。结果显示，幸存者经常遭受侵入性记忆的困扰，但对大屠杀记忆的回避并不常见。侵入性记忆与大屠杀带来的当前困扰、自我感知的健康不佳以及对死亡的恐惧密切相关。这些发现表明，侵入性记忆会影响幸存者对生活的认知，并改变他们应对衰老的方式。
