Nursery World - EYFS Best Practice: All about… Intergenerational trauma

Exposure to stress and abuse as a child directly affects how that child will go on to parent their own children, explains psychotherapist Robin Balbernie

Anyone who has worked with families will have seen how the traumatic experiences of the previous generation can have a negative influence in the present. Child maltreatment leads to an increased risk of the intergenerational transmission of harmful parenting practices and attitudes. So, parents who suffered abuse as a child are more likely to maltreat or neglect their children than those free of trauma.

Sexual abuse, in particular, appears to sabotage any interest in being a mother, resulting in more neglect, less confidence and poor self-control – and a greater use of physical punishment – in stressful parenting situations.

Parents with a history of maltreatment also have an increased risk of ante- and post-natal depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or borderline personality disorder, substance abuse, self-harm, alcohol and drug misuse, anxiety disorders and post-natal psychosis. All of these will have an impact on parenting behaviour, unless the mental health and emotional needs of both parent and child are addressed.

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