Long-Term Intergenerational Transmission of Memories of the Vajont Disaster

Objective: Previous literature documented the traumatic consequences of exposure to disasters on psychological functioning, but little attention has been paid to the intergenerational transmission of the memory of disasters. We explored long-term effects on the memory of the Vajont dam disaster in Northeast Italy that claimed 1,910 lives in 1963. Method: We collected data from 52 two-generation families in which the first generations were born before the disaster and the second generations after. The families were divided into an experimental group whose first generation survived the disaster and a control group whose first generation had moved there afterward. The interviews included an open-ended narrative on the memory of the disaster. We coded free narratives focusing on the richness of the memories (i.e., length, causes, core, aftermath), analyzing negative emotions and salience of the natural and psychological domains. Results: We applied generalized linear mixed models. The richness of the memories, including references to negative emotions, diminished with lower exposure and with intergenerational transmission. Moreover, the participants built a shared representation of the disaster that did not markedly differ across exposure or generation. The reported causes were attributed more to the natural rather than the human domain; the consequences more to the psychological compared to the material domain. Conclusions: Our findings highlight the processes through which collective memories of historical traumatic events are built over the long term and the way a collective identity develops to bear the burden of highly dramatic events and to transmit intergenerational lessons from the past. Clinical Impact Statement We shed light on how the victims of the Vajont disaster elaborated its meaning, developing coherent narratives. The richness of memories, including negative emotions, diminished with lower exposure and intergenerational transmission. The participants built a shared representation of the disaster-in terms of types of domains (e.g., natural, psychological, material) they referred to-not markedly differing across exposure or generation. Our findings document how collective memories of historical traumatic events are built over long periods and shared in a collective identity which could help bearing the burden of highly dramatic events and to transmit intergenerational lessons from the past.