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Historical, Intergenerational, and Cultural Transmission of Trauma
Historical, Intergenerational, and Cultural Transmission of Trauma
with Irit Felsen, PhD
Thursday, March 6th, 2025 6:00 pm-8:00 pm at ICP
Approved for 2 CE Credits!
Irit Felsen, Ph.D., will be presenting on the intergenerational transmission of parental/ancestral trauma in different groups, highlighting the most important aspects of these processes; many of which are common and some unique differences. The lecture will focus on empirical research and clinical literature on survivors of the Holocaust and their families, as this is still the largest body of literature in this field. The research has by now covered the lifespan of survivors and their children, who are now entering old age, The mental health professions have not readily accepted the validity of the concept of historical trauma, and the evidence from Holocaust families has opened the gate for research of historical trauma in other groups, including the Indigenous nations of America and the descendants of Black slaves in America.
Potential risks for loss of empathy inherent to the confrontation of trauma therapists with stories of brutality and sadism presented by their patients will be also discussed, as well as strategies to prevent such emotional biases from interfering with good therapy.
About Presenters:
Irit Felsen, Ph.D., is a clinical psychologist born in Israel, living in NY, specializing in the treatment of trauma and traumatic loss. Her clinical work has focused on Holocaust Survivors and their descendants, and her research on intergenerational transmission has been published in peer-reviewed journals and book chapters. She taught for 14 years at Ferkauf Graduate School of Psychology and is an Adjunct Professor at Columbia University in NYC, Co-Chair of the Trauma Work Group at the NGO Committee on Mental Health in Consultative Relationship to the United Nations, and Chair of the Older Adults Work Group within the Covid-19 APA Interdisciplinary Task Force.
For any questions, including those about accessibility or to request accommodations, please contact Daniella Ortiz at facts@icpnyc.org.
An important note about CEUs: ICP is an approved provider of continuing education credits for social workers, mental health counselors, marriage and family therapists, and psychoanalysts through the New York Department of Education. If your license is from a different state, please contact your state’s licensing board to find out if they will accept CE credits from New York State. If your license is from another state, please enter your license number with your state in parenthesis, ie 54321 (CA).
