Mental Health of Older Holocaust Survivors

The primary focus of this chapter is the mental health of Holocaust survivors and immigrants in the United States and Israel. First, the evolution of concern for the mental health of Holocaust survivors will be reviewed, followed by the review and discussion of the empirical findings from our cross-national research project. In our investigation of mental health of Holocaust survivors, we attempted to determine the prevalence, nature, and severity of psychiatric symptoms and psychological characteristics, which may distinguish survivors from a closely matched comparison group of immigrants of similar socio-cultural background.