Voices of Holocaust child survivors: learning how to foster resilience

This paper reports on qualitative research about resilience processes in Holocaust child survivors, especially those evident in hidden children. Data refers to 22 life stories collected through 19 semi-structured interviews and 3 published biographies. Collection and analysis of the life stories of people who experienced one or more traumatic events during the Holocaust (separation from birth family, hiding, parents’ deportation) has been carried out, employing a long term approach focused on all trajectories of life; the central focus of the research has been to identify the developmental outcomes of these survivors across the life course. The main aim of the study was to understand the protective factors that enabled child survivors to develop and grow. It is argued that this knowledge can be applied by social workers and other helping professionals working with vulnerable children and families, in order to foster similar resilient responses.