Intergenerational impact of war: A prospective longitudinal study

说明(申请人提供)：与战争有关的暴力是年轻人健康和发展的障碍；它威胁到他们的成年功能和子孙后代的福祉。先前的研究表明，在受战争影响的年轻人中，情绪和行为问题的发生率很高。这些问题在冲突后环境中可能会加剧，贫穷、受教育机会差以及失去关键的家庭和社区支持来源使社会急剧动荡更加严重。目前，有15个非洲国家卷入战争，或正在经历冲突后的不稳定。尽管撒哈拉以南非洲的冲突负担沉重，但对这种经历的代际影响的了解仅限于工业化国家的研究，例如那些侧重于影响的研究。 欧洲大屠杀的历史。在不同人群中，了解儿童时期与战争有关的经历和冲突后应激源如何影响成年人的福祉和功能以及其后代的健康和发育，对于设计有效的干预措施至关重要。尤其是，随着受战争影响的青年建立自己的家庭，有机会研究童年战争经历和战争造成的社会关系中断如何影响子女的养育。这项拟议的研究将极大地提高人们对战争在不同文化群体中代际影响的认识，利用生态发展理论来研究暴力的代际传播机制以及在个人、家庭和社区中运行的复原力。在对塞拉利昂战争中的前儿童兵和其他青年进行的一项罕见的前瞻性纵向研究的基础上，这项研究将在一个队列(N=529)中进行第四波数据收集，该队列于2002年首次接受采访，当时10-17岁，以检查战争经历对成人和家庭心理健康和功能的长期影响。这项拟议研究的一个关键创新是登记了原始队列的后代和亲密伴侣。一个扩展的调查单元将评估家庭动态、育儿方式、亲密伴侣关系、家庭暴力以及子女的身体、认知和情感发展。分析将探索将个人、家庭和儿童的结果与冲突相关的经历和冲突后的逆境和资源联系起来的机制。这项研究旨在确定父母因素、家庭进程和社会机制，以便在干预措施中有针对性地帮助受战争影响的儿童和家庭实现其全部潜力或健康和富有成效的生活。社区咨询委员会的积极参与以及调查人员和当地机构之间的强有力的合作将为研究设计提供依据，确保参与者的强大留住，并提供传播渠道。研究结果将确定干预措施的优先事项，以帮助受战争影响的不同人群，包括来自战乱地区的难民，他们已在美国重新定居。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): War-related violence is an impediment to the health and development of young people; it threatens their adult functioning and the well-being of future generations. Prior research has demonstrated high rates of emotional and behavioral problems among war-affected youth. These problems may be exacerbated in the post-conflict setting, where dramatic societal disruptions are compounded by poverty, poor educational access, and loss of key sources of familial and community support. Currently, 15 African countries are involved in war, or are experiencing post-conflict instability. Despite the high burden of conflict in sub-Saharan Africa, understanding of the intergenerational effects of such experiences is limited to studies in industrialized countries, such as those focused on the effects of the Holocaust in Europe. In diverse populations, understanding how childhood war-related experiences and post-conflict stressors influence the well-being and functioning of adults as well as the health and development of their offspring is crucial to designing effective interventions. I particular, as war-affected youth start families of their own, opportunities exist to examine how child rearing is influenced by childhood war experiences and interruptions in social relationships due to war. The proposed research will significantly advance knowledge of the intergenerational effects of war in diverse cultural groups using ecological developmental theory to study mechanisms of the intergenerational transmission of violence as well as resilience operating in individuals, families, and communities. Building on a rare prospective longitudinal study of former child soldiers and other youth exposed to war in Sierra Leone, the study will conduct a fourth wave of data collection in a cohort (N=529), first interviewed in 2002 as 10-17 year- olds, to examine the long-term effects of war experiences on adult and family mental health and functioning. A key innovation of the proposed study is the enrollment of the offspring and intimate partners of the original cohort. An expanded survey battery will assess family dynamics, parenting, intimate partner relationships, family violence, and the physical, cognitive, and emotional development of offspring. Analyses will explore mechanisms linking individual, family, and child outcomes to conflict-related experiences and post-conflict adversities and resources. The research is intended to identify parental factors, family processes, and societal mechanisms to target in interventions to help war-affected children and families achieve their full potential or healthy and productive lives. Active participation of Community Advisory Boards and strong collaborations between investigators and local institutions will inform the study design, ensure strong retention of participants and provide channels for dissemination. Research findings will identify priorities for interventions to assist diverse populations affected by war, including refugees from war-torn regions who have resettled in the US.