Keeping a healthy distance: Self-differentiation and perceived health among ex-prisoners-of-war's wives

Yael Lahav*, Jacob Y. Stein, Zahava Solomon

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

11 Scopus citations

Abstract

Objective War captivity may affect spouses of former-prisoners-of-war (ex-POWs) in many ways, including posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) and somatic difficulties manifested in negative perceived health. This is generally known as secondary traumatization. Theory suggests that development of secondary traumatization occurs through the relationship with the primary trauma survivor Figley (1986), thus implying that the ability to keep balanced emotional distance in the relationship may play a pivotal role. Notwithstanding, the contribution of self-differentiation to secondary somatic disturbances remains largely uninvestigated. The current study fills this gap. Methods Ex-POWs’ wives (n = 143) and control former-combatants’ wives (n = 102), were assessed prospectively 30 (T1) and 38 (T2) years after the 1973 Yom Kippur War. Self-differentiation and PTSS were assessed at both time-points, while perceived health measures were assessed at T2. Results Wives of ex-POWs endorsed higher PTSS, lower self-differentiation and negative perceived health, compared to control wives. Indirect exposure to war captivity was related to low self-differentiation and elevated PTSS, which predicted negative perceived health. Furthermore, self-differentiation characterized by fusion-with-others fully mediated the relation between indirect exposure to war captivity and perceived health, beyond the effects of PTSS as a mechanism. Conclusion Results suggest that tendencies towards fusion-with-others within the marital relationship, act as a risk factor not only for psychological distress but also for somatic distress among secondary trauma survivors. Hence, clinical interventions may seek to improve indirect trauma survivor's self-differentiation capacities, thus potentially facilitating the prevention of secondary somatic distress.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)61-68
Number of pages8
JournalJournal of Psychosomatic Research
Volume89
DOIs
StatePublished - 1 Oct 2016

Keywords

  • Perceived health
  • Posttraumatic stress symptoms
  • Prisoners of war
  • Secondary traumatization
  • Self-differentiation

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