Survey and comparison of psychological factors between descendants and non-descendants of survivors of the atomic bomb: Generational differences in mental health indicators

Abstract

Background: The effects of the atomic bomb experience on survivors and their children have been a topic of human and research interest since early in the postwar era. The topic has centered around knowledge of physical health and studies on germline genetic effects in the second-generation offspring of survivors. However, comparatively little has been done to understand the psychological impact.

Purpose: The present study focuses on generational factors related to the psychological makeup of second and third generation descendants of atomic bomb survivors. Specifically, this study takes depressive symptoms and factors related to health anxiety into consideration as mental health indicators to offer preliminary evidence that addresses this gap.

Objective: Data was collected from participants with and without familial affiliation to atomic bomb survivors stratified by age. This resulted in 50 participants that reported having at least one parent who was an atomic bomb survivor categorized as second-generation descendants, 50 participants with at least one grandparent that was an atomic bomb survivor, 50 unrelated participants within an age range of 50-69, and 50 unrelated participants within an age range of 30-49.

Method: Depressive symptom severity among participants was examined with the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D), and health anxiety was examined using the Sense of Health Anxiety Scale (SHAS).

Result: A significant difference was observed for participants without relatives who experienced the atomic bomb such that depressive symptom scores for second generation participants were higher than third generation participants (F (1, 197) = 8.38, p < .01, η² = 0.04). A between-group difference for third generation participants with and without relatives who experienced the atomic bomb was observed such that third-generation participants with relatives had higher CES-D scores (F (1, 197) = 6.36, p < .01, η² = 0.03). The levels of health anxiety did not differ between generations with or without relatives of atomic bomb survivors.

Conclusion: Our findings indicated a difference in depressive symptom tendencies between second and third generation individuals related to atomic bomb survivors. These results suggest that future studies examine the difference in psychological effects between generations as they relate to possible processes that lead to an increase in depressive symptoms.

Keywords: Atomic bomb survivors; Depressive symptoms; Generational factors; Health anxiety; Intergenerational transmission.