Understanding Intergenerational Trauma Among Arab, Middle Eastern, and North African (Arab/MENA) Americans

Arab, Middle Eastern, and North African Americans experience various forms of racial-ethnic trauma in the United States, including historical and intergenerational trauma (IGT). The population has been migrating to the United States since the 1800s, and the number of migrants has risen in recent decades due to war, persecution, and family reunification. As a result, the children of these migrants may be exposed to IGT, with research suggesting that descendants of individuals who have experienced trauma are more susceptible to poor mental health outcomes. Using semistructured interviews, alongside the art of storytelling and empowerment through critical consciousness, this study investigated how IGT may be transmitted to Arab, Middle Eastern, and North African second-generation immigrants in the United States. Data from 12 participants were analyzed using interpretative phenomenological analysis. Two superordinate themes were identified from the interviews and included (a) process of IGT and (b) family communication. The first superordinate theme included the following subthemes: historical family context, perceived parent trauma responses, transmission of emotional pain, and immigrant guilt. The second superordinate theme included the following subthemes: silence, avoidance of emotion, intergenerational storytelling, and responsibility to pass down stories. Clinical and research implications are examined, emphasizing the integration of storytelling into research studies to enhance meaning-making for both participants and researchers. For clinicians, the application of narratives in therapeutic work is explored as a potential healing mechanism in individual and group therapy settings.