The Silent Echoes of War: Parenting and Trauma Transmission in Bosnia and Herzegovina

Year 2025, Volume: 22 Issue: 2, 280 - 296

Lejla Hasandedic-dapo , Hüdayar Cihan

https://doi.org/10.26466/opusjsr.1637748

Abstract

This study examines the relationship between war-related trauma experienced by mothers in Bosnian families, their parenting styles, and the intergenerational transmission of trauma. The data were collected from a sample of 146 mother-child pairs, consisting of mothers who were directly exposed to the 1992–1995 Bosnian War and their children born after the war. The findings revealed that maternal trauma was significantly associated with control-oriented parenting practices (r = .17, p < .05), but showed no significant relationship with acceptance levels (r = -.07, p > .05). Multivariate analysis indicated that there were no statistically significant differences in parenting styles among mothers with low, moderate, and high levels of trauma exposure. Mediation analysis further demonstrated that maternal trauma partially influenced secondary trauma symptoms in children through control-oriented parenting behaviors. This partial mediation was supported by a reduction in the direct effect from β = .18 to β = .15. Overall, the results highlight the critical role of parenting behaviors in the intergenerational transmission of trauma. These findings underscore the need for trauma-informed interventions that also address parenting practices in families affected by war, in order to mitigate long-term psychological consequences in post-conflict societies.

Keywords

war trauma, parenting styles, transgenerational transmission, Bosnia and Herzegovina, mediation analysis

Savaşın Sessiz Yankıları: Bosna-Hersek'te Ebeveynlik ve Travma Aktarımı

Abstract

Bu çalışma, Bosna-Hersek'teki ailelerde annelerin savaşla ilişkili yaşadıkları travmaların, benimsedikleri ebeveynlik stilleri üzerindeki etkisini ve bu etkilerin çocuklara aktarılan nesiller arası travma ile olan ilişkisini incelemektedir. Araştırma kapsamında, 1992-1995 yılları arasında gerçekleşen Bosna Savaşı'na doğrudan maruz kalan anneler ile savaş sonrasında dünyaya gelen çocuklarından oluşan toplam 146 anne-çocuk çiftiyle veri toplanmıştır. Elde edilen bulgular, annelerin savaş travmasının özellikle kontrol odaklı ebeveynlik uygulamaları ile anlamlı bir ilişki gösterdiğini (r = .17, p < .05), ancak kabul düzeyi ile istatistiksel olarak anlamlı bir ilişki içinde olmadığını (r = -.07, p > .05) ortaya koymuştur. Uygulanan çok değişkenli analiz sonuçlarına göre, annelerin travmaya düşük, orta veya yüksek düzeyde maruz kalma durumları ile ebeveynlik stilleri arasında anlamlı bir farklılık gözlenmemiştir. Aracılık analizi ise, annelerin travmatik yaşantılarının çocuklardaki ikincil travma semptomlarını, kontrol odaklı ebeveynlik uygulamaları aracılığıyla kısmen etkilediğini ortaya koymuştur; doğrudan etkinin β = .18'den β = .15'e düşmesiyle bu kısmi aracılık etkisi istatistiksel olarak anlamlı bulunmuştur. Çalışmanın genel sonuçları, ebeveynlik davranışlarının nesiller arası travma aktarımında önemli bir rol oynadığını göstermekte ve özellikle savaştan etkilenen toplumlarda, travma sonrası ruh sağlığı desteklerinin ebeveynlik süreçlerini de kapsayacak şekilde planlanmasının gerekliliğini vurgulamaktadır.

Keywords

savaş travması, ebeveynlik stilleri, nesiller arası aktarım, Bosna-Hersek, aracılık analizi

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