Communal and Familial War-Related Stress Factors: The Case of the Palestinian Child

The authors discuss traumatic familial and communal risk factors faced by the average Palestinian child during times of war. Unlike most research, which limits Palestinian children's experience to military-related traumatic events, this article attempts to illustrate their communal and familial contexts empirically. Sources studies were published in international literature, the authors' own clinical experience and analytic understanding of historical and present events, and a case study. The authors address different types of stress and trauma that face Palestinian children and compare the situation during the first and second Intifadas. Furthermore, concepts such as trauma; witnessing; transgenerational, familial, and communal stress factors; and secondary trauma are discussed. The hope is that this article will help clinicians and researchers develop a more comprehensive conceptual model of the emotional lives of Palestinian children.