Skip to main content

Children and War

  • Chapter
Children and Disasters

Part of the book series: Issues in Clinical Child Psychology ((ICCP))

Abstract

Although many people hope for world peace, war continues to be a part of daily life. Over 20 wars are currently occurring throughout the world (Macksoud, 1991). As a result, millions of children are faced with the experience of war. Exposure to traumatic events, such as the death of a loved one, displacement, or witnessing violence are common occurrences, as are children’s direct military participation and the difficulties of family or community members who are or have been involved in military action.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 84.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Preview

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

References

  • Allodi, E. (1989). The children of victims of political persecution and torture: A psychological study of a Latin American refugee community. International Journal of Mental Health, 18, 3 - 15.

    Google Scholar 

  • Arazi, S. (1991). A summary of the activities of a national hotline. Unpublished manuscript. Ramat-Hen: Mental Health Center (in Hebrew).

    Google Scholar 

  • Arroyo, W., and Eth, S. (1985). Children traumatized by Central American warfare. In S. Eth and R. Pynoos (Eds.), Post-traumatic stress disorder in children. Washington DC. American Psychiatric Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Baider, L, and Rosenfeld, E. (1974). Effect of parental fears on children in wartime. Social Casework, 55, 497 - 503.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bloch, E. ( 1991, Aug.). Approaching war, abating street: Psychology in action in the community. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Psychological Association. San Francisco.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bloch, H. S. (1969). Army clinical psychiatry in the combat zone-1967-1968. American Journal of Psychiatry, 126, 289 - 298.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Boothby, N. ( 1991, Aug.). War zones: Psychological theory and practice in the field.. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Psychological Association. San Francisco.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bryce, J. W., Walker, N., and Peterson, C. (1989). Predicting symptoms of depression among women in Beirut: The importance of daily life. International Journal of Mental Health, 18, 57 - 70.

    Google Scholar 

  • Burt, C. (1943). War neuroses in British children. Nervous Child, 2, 324 - 337.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cairns, E., and Wilson, R. (1989). Mental health aspects of political violence in Northern Ireland. International Journal of Mental Health, 18, 38 - 56.

    Google Scholar 

  • Carey-Trefzer, C. (1949). The results of a clinical study of war-damaged children who attended the child guidance clinic, the Hospital for Sick Children, Great Ormand Street, London. The Journal of Mental Science, 95, 535 - 559.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Chimienti, G., Nasr, J. A., and Khalifeh, I. (1989). Children’s reactions to war-related stress. Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, 24, 282 - 287.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Crawshaw, R. (1963). Reaction to disaster. Archives of General Psychiatry, 9, 157-162. Davidson, J., Smith, R., and Kudler, H. (1989). Familial psychiatric illness in chronic post-traumatic stress disorder. Comprehensive Psychiatry, 30, 339 - 345.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dawes, A., Tredoux, C., and Feinstein, A. (1989). Political violence in South Africa: Some effects on children of the violent destruction of their community. International Journal of Mental Health, 18, 16 - 43.

    Google Scholar 

  • Day, R. C., and Sadek, S. N. (1982). The effect of Benson’s relaxation response on the anxiety levels of Lebanese children under stress. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 34, 350 - 356.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • DeAngelis, T. (1991, March). Psychologists take calls from kids. American Psychological Association Monitor, 22, 8.

    Google Scholar 

  • Doreleijers, T. A. H., and Donovan, D. M (1990). Transgenerational traumatization in children of parents interned in Japanese civil internment camps in the Dutch East Indies during world war II. The Journal of Psychohistory, 17, 435 - 447.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dor-Shav, N. K. (1978). On the long-range effects of concentration camp internment on Nazi victims: 25 years later. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 46, 1 - 11.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Dunsdon, M. I. (1941). A psychologist’s contribution to air-raid problems. Mental Health, 2, 37 - 41.

    Google Scholar 

  • Earls, E, Smith, E., Reich, W., and Jung, K. G. (1988). Investigating psychopathological consequences of a disaster in children: A pilot study incorporating a structured diagnosis approach. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 27, 90 - 95.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Elizur, E., and Kaffman, M. (1983). Factors influencing the severity of childhood bereavement reactions. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 53, 668 - 676.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Embry, D. D. (1990a). I get support from friends. A story/workbook to help young people of active duty, reserve and national guard families affected by Desert Storm. Tucson, AZ: Project Me.

    Google Scholar 

  • Embry, D. D. (1990b). They’re coming home: This story/workbook stars your child, and helps your child cope with problems that might arise when a loved one returns from deployment. Tucson, AZ: Project Me.

    Google Scholar 

  • Embry, D. D. (1991). They’re coining home. A guide for parents of infants and toddlers affected by deployment. Tucson, AZ: Project Me.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fee, E. (1980). Responses to a behavioural questionnaire of a group of Belfast children. In J. Harbison and J. Harbison (Eds.), A society under stress: Children and young people in Northern Ireland. Somerset, NJ: Open Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fee, E. (1983). Educational change in Belfast school children 1975 - 81. In J. Harbison (Ed.), Children of the troubles: Children in Northern Ireland. Belfast: Stranmillis College Learning Resources Unit.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fendrich, M., Warner, V, and Weissman, M. (1990). Family risk factors, parental depression, and psychopathology in offspring. Developmental Psychology, 26, 40 - 50.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fogelman, E., and Savran, B. (1979). Therapeutic groups for children of Holocaust survivors. International Journal of Group Psychotherapy, 29, 211 - 235.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Folkman, S., Lazarus, R. S., Gruen, R. J., and DeLongis, A. (1986). Appraisal, coping, health status, and psychological symptoms. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 50, 571 - 579.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Fraser, M. (1971). The cost of commotion-Analysis of psychiatric sequelae of 1969 Belfast riots. British Journal of Psychiatry, 118, 257.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Fraser, M. (1974). Children in conflict. Harmondsworth, England: Penguin.

    Google Scholar 

  • Freud, A., and Burlingame, D. (1942). Young children in wartime. London: George Allen and Unwin.

    Google Scholar 

  • Freyberg, J. T. (1980). Difficulties in separation-individuation as experienced by offspring of Nazi Holocaust survivors. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 50, 87 - 95.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Gampel, Y. (1988). Facing war, murder, torture, and death in latency. Psychoanalytic Review, 75, 499 - 509.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Goldsmith, W, and Cretokos, C. (1969). Unhappy odysseys: Psychiatric hospitalization among Viet Nam returnees. American Journal of Psychiatry, 20, 78 - 83.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gottlieb, B. (1985, Spring). Women and children as victims of war. Response, 19-21. Hammen, C., Adrian, C., Gordon, D., Burge, D., Jaenicke, C., and Hiroto, D. (1987). Children

    Google Scholar 

  • of depressed mothers: Maternal strain and symptom predictors of dysfunction. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 96, 190 - 198.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hammen, C., Burge, D., and Stansbury, K. (1990). Relationship of mother and child variables to child outcomes in a high-risk sample: A causal modeling analysis. Developmental Psychology, 26, 24 - 30.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hogman, E. (1983). Displaced Jewish children during World War II: How they coped. Journal of Humanistic Psychology, 23, 51 - 66.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kaffman, M. (1977). Kibbutz civilian population under war stress. British Journal of Psychiatry, 130, 489 - 494.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kaffman, M., and Elizur, E. (1983). Bereavement responses of kibbutz and nonkibbutz children following the death of the father. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 24, 290 - 299.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kashani, J. H., Orvaschel, H., Burk, J. P., and Reid, J. C. (1985). Informant variance: The issue of parent-child disagreement. Journal of the American Academy of Child Psychiatry, 24, 437 - 441.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kestenberg, J. (1985). Child survivors of the Holocaust-40 years later: Reflections and commentary. The American Academy of Child Psychiatry, 24, 408 - 412.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kinzie, J. D., Sack, W. H., Angell, R. H., Manson, S., and Rath, B. (1986). The psychiatric effects of massive trauma on Cambodian children: 1. the children. Journal of The American Academy of Child Psychiatry, 25, 370 - 376.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Klingman, A. (1985). Free writing: Evaluation of a preventive program with elementary school children. Journal of School Psychology, 23, 167 - 175.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Klingman, A. (1982). Persuasive communication in avoidance behavior: Using role simulation as a strategy. Simulation and Games, 13, 37 - 50.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Klingman, A. (1992a). The effects of parent-implemented crisis-intervention: A real-life emergency involving a child’s refusal to use a gas-mask. Journal of Clinical Child Psychology, 21, 70 - 75.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Klingman, A. (1992b). School psychology services: Community-based, first-order crisis intervention during the Gulf War. Psychology in the Schools, 29, 376 - 384.

    Google Scholar 

  • Klingman, A. (1992c). Stress reactions of Israeli youth during the Gulf War: A quantitative study. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 23, 521 - 527.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Klingman, A., Sagi, A., and Raviv, A. (in press). Effects of war on Israeli children. In L. A. Leavitt, and N. A. Fox (Eds.), Psychological effects of war and violence on children. New York: Lawrence Erlbaum.

    Google Scholar 

  • Koubovi, D. (1987). Therapeutic teaching of literature during the war and its aftermath. In C. D. Spielberger, I. G. Sarason, and N. A. Milgram (Eds.), Stress and Anxiety (Vol. 8, pp. 345349 ). Washington, DC: Hemisphere.

    Google Scholar 

  • Krell, R. (1990). Children who survived Japanese concentration camps: Clinical observations and therapy. Canadian Journal of Psychiatry, 35, 149 - 152.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lavie, P.,Amit, Y., Epstein, R., and Tzischinsky, O. (1992, June). Children’s sleep under the threat of the Scud missiles. Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Association of Sleep Research, Phoenix, AZ.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lazarus, R. S., and Folkman, S. (1984). Stress, appraisal and coping. New York: Lawrence Erlbaum.

    Google Scholar 

  • Leon, G. R., Butcher, J. N., Kleinman, M. Goldberg, A., and Almagor, M. (1981). Survivors of the Holocaust and their children: Current status and adjustment. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 41, 503 - 516.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lyons, H. A. (1972). Depressive illness and aggression in Belfast. British Medical Journal, 1, 342.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Lyons, H. A., and Bindall, K. K. (1977). Attempted suicide in Belfast: A continuation of a study in a district general hospital. Irish Medical Journal, 70, 322.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lystad, M. (1984). Children’s responses to disaster: Family implications. International Journal of Family Psychiatry, 5, 41 - 60.

    Google Scholar 

  • Macksoud, M. ( 1991, Aug.). The war experiences of Lebanese children. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Psychological Association. San Francisco, California. Martin-Baro, I. (1989). Political violence and war as causes of psychosocial trauma in El Salvador. International Journal of Mental Health, 18, 3 - 20.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mazor, A., Gampel, Y., Enright, R. D., and Orenstein, R. (1990). Holocaust survivors: Coping with post-traumatic memories in childhood and 40 years later. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 3, 1 - 14.

    Google Scholar 

  • McFarlane, A. C., Policansky, S., and Irwin, C. P (1987). A longitudinal study of the psychological morbidity in children due to natural disaster. Psychological Medicine, 17, 727 - 738.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mercier, M. H., and Despert, J. L. (1942). Psychological effects of the war on French children.Psychosomatic Medicine, 5, 266 - 272.

    Google Scholar 

  • Milgram, N. A. (1982). War related stress in Israeli children and youth. In L. Goldberger and S. Breznitz (Eds.), Handbook of stress: Theoretical and clinical aspects. New York: Free Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Milgram, N. A., Toubiana, Y., Klingman, A., Raviv, A., and Goldstein, I. (1988). Situational exposure and personal loss in children’s acute and chronic stress reactions to a school disaster. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 1, 339 - 352.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Milgram, R. M., and Milgram, N. A. (1976). The effect of the Yom Kippur war on anxiety level in Israeli children. The Journal of Psychology, 94, 107 - 113.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Mintz, M. (1991). A comparison between children in two areas following the Gulf War. Unpublished manuscript, Department of Psychology, Tel Aviv University (in Hebrew).

    Google Scholar 

  • Modlin, H. C. (1960). The trauma in “trauma neurosis.” Bulletin of the Menninger Clinic, 24, 40 - 56.

    Google Scholar 

  • Modlin, H. C. (1967). The postaccident anxiety syndrome: Psychosocial aspects. American Journal of Psychiatry, 123, 1008 - 1021.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Nadler, A., Kav-Venaki, S., and Gleitman, B. (1985). Transgenerational effects of the Holocaust: Externalization of aggression in second generation of Holocaust survivors. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 53, 365 - 369.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Nagata, D. (1990). The Japanese American internment: Exploring the transgenerational consequences of traumatic stress. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 3, 47 - 69.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Noy, B. (1991). Pupils calls to the Open Line during the emergency period of the Gulf War. Jerusalem: Ministry of Education and Culture.Orvaschel, H., Weissman, M., and Kidd, K. (1980). Children and depression. Journal of Affective Disorders, 2, 1 - 16.

    Google Scholar 

  • Palgi, P. (1973). The socio-cultural expressions and implications of death, mourning and bereavement arising out of the war situation in Israel. The Israel Annals of Psychiatry and Related Disciplines, 11, 301 - 329.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Parsons, J., Kehle, T. J., and Owen, S. V. (1990). Incidence of behavior problems among children of Vietnam war veterans. School Psychology International, 11, 253 - 259.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Perez, J. ( 1991, Aug.). Operational homefront: Psychology’s response to the Mideast crisis. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Psychological Association, San Francisco.

    Google Scholar 

  • Punamaki, R. (1989). Factors affecting the mental health of Palestinian children exposed to political violence. International Journal of Mental Health, 18, 63 - 79.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pynoos, R. S., and Eth, S. (1985). Developmental perspective on psychic trauma in childhood. In C. R. Figley (Ed.), Trauma and its wake (Vol. 2, pp. 36 - 52 ). New York: Brunner/ Mazel.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rachman, S. J. (1990). Fear and courage. New York: W. H. Freeman.

    Google Scholar 

  • Raviv, A. (in press). The use of hotline and media interventions in Israel during the Gulf War. In L. A. Leavitt and N. A. Fox (Eds.), Psychological effects of war and violence on children. New York: Lawrence Erlbaum.

    Google Scholar 

  • Raviv, A., and Klingman, A. (1983). Children under stress. In S. Breznitz (Ed.), Stress in Israel (pp. 138 - 162 ). New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold.

    Google Scholar 

  • Robinson, S. (1979). Late effects of persecution in persons who-as children or young adolescents-survived Nazi occupation in Europe. Israel Annals of Psychiatry and Related Disciplines, 17, 209 - 214.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Ronstrom, A. (1989). Children in Central America: Victims of war. Child Welfare, 68, 145-153.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rosenbaum, M., and Ronen, T. ( 1991, Nov.). How did Israeli children and their parents cope with being daily attacked by Scud missiles during the Gulf War? Paper presented at the 25th

    Google Scholar 

  • Annual Convention for the Advancement of Behavior Therapy, New York City. Rosenheck, R. (1986). Impact of posttraumatic stress disorder of World War II on the next

    Google Scholar 

  • generation. The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease, 174,319-327.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rosenheck, R., and Nathan, P. (1985). Secondary traumatization in children of Vietnam veterans. Hospital and Community Psychiatry, 36, 538 - 539.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rosenheck, R., and Thomson, J. (1986). “Detoxification” of Vietnam war trauma: A combined family-individual approach. Family Process, 25, 559-570.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rubenstein, A. ( 1991, Aug.). The children left behind: Preventive interventions in the school system. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Psychological Association, San Francisco.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rubenstein, A., and Embry, D. D. (1990a). How to support our children during Operation Desert Storm. Tucson, AZ: Project Me.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rubenstein, A., and Embry, D. D. (1990b). They’re coining home: This story/workbook stars you and is about having a good homecoming when someone you love returns from deployment. Tucson, AZ: Project Me.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rubenstein, A., and Embry, D. D. (1991). They’re coming home: A guide for friends and relatives, schools, employers, coworkers, and the community. Tucson, AZ: Project Me.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rutter, M., and Quinton, D. (1984). Parental psychiatric disorder: Effects on children. Psycho-

    Google Scholar 

  • logical Medicine,14, 853-880.

    Google Scholar 

  • Saigh, P. (1986). In vitro flooding in the treatment of a 6-yr.-old boy’s posttraumatic stress disorder. Behavior Research and Therapy, 24, 685 - 688.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Saigh, P. (1989). The validity of the DSM-III posttraumatic stress disorder classification as applied to children. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 98, 189 - 192.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Schwarzwald, J., Weisenberg, M., Waysman, M., Solomon, Z., and Klingman, A. (1991). Stress reaction of school-age children to the bombardment by Scud missiles. Unpublished manuscript. Department of Mental Health, Medical Corps, Israel Defense Forces (in Hebrew).

    Google Scholar 

  • Sigal, J. J., DiNicola, V. E, and Buonvino, M. (1988). Grandchildren of survivors: Can negative effects of prolonged exposure to excessive stress be observed two generations later? Canadian Journal of Psychiatry, 33, 207 - 212.

    Google Scholar 

  • Solomon, Z., Kotler, M., and Mikulincer, M. (1988). Combat-related posttraumatic stress disorder among second-generation Holocaust survivors: Preliminary findings. American Journal of Psychiatry, 145, 865 - 868.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Straker, G., and the Sanctuaries Team. (1987). The continuous traumatic stress syndrome: The single therapeutic interview. Psychology in Society, 8, 48.

    Google Scholar 

  • Strange, R. E., and Brown, D. E. (1970). Home from the wars. American Journal of Psychiatry, 127, 488 - 492.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Swenson, C. C., Powell, M. P., Foster, K. Y., and Saylor, C. E (1991, Aug.). Long-term reactions of young children to natural disaster. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Psychological Association, San Francisco.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tsoi, M. M., Yu, G. K. K., and Lieh-Mak, E (1986). Vietnamese refugee children in camps in Hong Kong. Social Science Medicine, 23, 1147 - 1150.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Weisenberg, M., Schwartzwald, J., Waysman, M., Solomon, Z., and Klingman, A. (1991). Coping of school-age children in the sealed room during scud missile bombardment and postwar stress reactions. Unpublished manuscript, Department of Mental Health, Medical Corps, Israel Defense Forces (in Hebrew).

    Google Scholar 

  • Yule, W, and Williams, R. M. (1990). Post-traumatic stress reactions in children. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 3, 279 - 295.

    Google Scholar 

  • Zeidner, M., Klingman, A., and Itzkovitz, R. (in press). Children’s affective reactions and coping under missile attack: A semi-projective assessment procedure. Journal of Personality Assessment.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ziv, A., and Israeli, R. (1973). Effects of bombardment on the manifest anxiety levels of children living in the kibbutz. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 40, 287 - 291.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Ziv, A., Kruglanski, A. W, and Shulman, S. (1974). Children’s psychological reactions to wartime stress. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 30, 24 - 30.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 1993 Springer Science+Business Media New York

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Swenson, C.C., Klingman, A. (1993). Children and War. In: Saylor, C.F. (eds) Children and Disasters. Issues in Clinical Child Psychology. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4757-4766-9_9

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4757-4766-9_9

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4419-3234-1

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4757-4766-9

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

Publish with us

Policies and ethics