The Role of Fathers in Intergenerational Trauma: A Mixed Methods Investigation of the Impact of Holistic Well-Being and Parental Empowerment

Background and Purpose: Intergenerational trauma occurs when parents’ traumatic experiences contribute directly or indirectly to trauma-related symptoms in their children. Research has indicated that fathers who experience early life or complex trauma have greater likelihood of their children experiencing post-traumatic stress symptoms and of perpetrating abuse themselves. Though a variety of mechanisms have been proposed for the increased risk of trauma among children of fathers who experienced trauma, many of the existing studies have been limited by their adoption of a deficit-focused approach. Additional research is needed on fathers’ strengths and protective factors, such as fathers’ holistic wellness and parental empowerment, that can be targeted in supportive interventions to interrupt intergenerational trauma and promote child and family well-being. Methods: The study used a convergent mixed methods design to explore the influence of fathers’ holistic well-being and parental empowerment on their child’s trauma symptoms. An online survey collected data from 48 fathers regarding their adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), their children’s traumatic experiences and trauma symptoms, and fathers’ sense of parental empowerment and holistic wellness, as well as several open-ended qualitative questions on their challenges and strengths as parents. Quantitative analysis included multiple linear regression of major dimensions of parental empowerment (i.e., efficacy to parent, efficacy to connect) and holistic wellness (i.e., affliction, equanimity) as predictors of child trauma symptoms. Thematic analysis then explored fathers’ perceptions of their trauma and parenting followed by mixed methods analysis comparing and integrating the quantitative and qualitative findings. Results: Though fathers’ ACE scores were positively associated with children’s trauma screener scores, fathers’ childhood trauma was not associated with their children’s trauma symptoms in any of the regression analyses. Independent regression models of each construct of interest found that all four domains were significantly associated with child trauma symptoms. Fathers’ level of affliction on a holistic wellness measure was positively associated with higher trauma symptoms (β = .43, p = .001), whereas equanimity (β = -.30, p = .037), efficacy to parent (β = -.29, p = .043), and efficacy to connect (β = -.30, p = .038) were associated with lower child trauma symptoms. Qualitative analysis identified major themes of fathers’ efforts to cope with their own trauma and determination to protect their children from adverse experiences, with notable subthemes of learning from their own childhood experiences and motivation to be better parents than they had had growing up. Conclusions and Implications: The mixed methods analysis indicated a variety of mechanisms through which fathers prevented their own ACEs from leading to trauma symptoms for their own children. While fathers’ trauma was associated with higher affliction and perceived challenges to their mental health and coping, most of the findings identified how fathers’ equanimity and efficacy and determination as parents helped to reduce child trauma symptoms, even after accounting for children’s experiences of trauma. Based on these findings, clinicians and researchers should focus on developing and using supportive interventions to engage fathers as a protective resource in preventing intergenerational trauma.