THE EFFECTS OF THE HOLOCAUST FOR SIX POLISH CATHOLIC SURVIVORS AND THEIR DESCENDANTS A Dissertation Presented to the Faculty of Antioch University Seattle Seattle, WA In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements of the Degree Doctor of Psychology By Kristen M. Montague September 2012 THE EFFECTS OF THE HOLOCAUST FOR SIX POLISH CATHOLIC SURVIVORS AND THEIR DESCENDANTS This dissertation, by Kristen Montague, has been approved by the committee members signed below who recommend that it be accepted by the faculty of the Antioch University Seattle at Seattle, WA In partial fulfillment of requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PSYCHOLOGY Dissertation Committee: ________________________________ Philip Cushman, Ph.D. Chairperson ________________________________ Samantha Slaughter, Psy.D. ________________________________ Mary Wieneke, Ph.D. ________________________________ Date ii © Copyright by Kristen M. Montague, 2012 All Rights Reserved iii 1 ABSTRACT THE EFFECTS OF THE HOLOCAUST FOR SIX POLISH CATHOLIC SURVIVORS AND THEIR DESCENDANTS Kristen M. Montague Antioch University Seattle It is now well known that six million Jews, 220,000 Roma, 250,000 disabled persons, and thousands of Homosexuals and Jehovah’s witnesses were murdered in the Holocaust. It is less understood that due to their ethnic identity that approximately, 1. 9 million Polish Catholic citizens were murdered during the Holocaust and that 1.7 million Polish non-Jews were imprisoned in concentration camps in Siberia, 2.0 million were deported as forced laborers for the German Reich and 100,000 were killed in Auschwitz. To date, there are no studies within Western psychology that address the effects of the Holocaust for this population and/or their descendants. Given the known after-effects of Holocaust-related trauma for Jewish Holocaust survivors and their families, the trauma response observed in other genocide survivors, and the lack of psychological research aimed at exploring the experience of non-Jewish Holocaust survivors, there is a need to study the lived experience and effects of Holocaust-related trauma with Polish Catholic survivors and their families. This is an interpretative study that explores the lived experience of six Polish Catholic survivors and their descendants. The sample included 12 participants comprised of six survivors, four second generation and two third generation participants. Semi-structured interviews were used to examine participants’ perception of how Holocaust related trauma influenced their lives. 2 Textual analysis found that the Holocaust has lasting effects for survivors and their descendants. Findings indicate that the effects of the Holocaust for its Polish Catholic survivors are similar to the effects of the Holocaust observed in Jewish survivors and survivors of other genocides. Survivors conveyed that the Holocaust related trauma they experienced continues to effect them in their present day life through: loss of family, feelings of sadness, Holocaust related flashbacks and nightmares, and disturbances in memory or the ability to recall Holocaust related trauma. Findings indicate that the Holocaust has intergenerational effects for the survivors’ descendants. Children and grandchildren of survivors described themes about loss of family, the effects of the Holocaust on survivors’ parenting, on familial interactions and on second and third generation parenting. The findings in this study offer ways for psychologists to understand the long-term effects of persecution, suffering, and genocide, and the experience of survival in the aftermath of the Holocaust. The electronic version of this dissertation is at OhioLink ETD Center, www. Ohiolink.edu/etd DEDICATIONS I would like to dedicate my dissertation to my grandmother, Josephine Pogoda and to my grandfather Janusz Sieroslawski, who are both Polish Catholics who survived persecution and enslavement by the Nazi regime. It is because of their strength, courage, and determination to survive and prosper that afforded me the opportunity to be born in the United States and gave me the belief that I too can survive trials and tribulations. They laid the very foundation upon which I live and it is to them that I owe my professional and personal accomplishments. To my mother, a member of the second generation who has brought light and healing into my life and whose love and care has afforded me numerous opportunities to grow, to thrive, and to create a life for myself. It is because of her love and steadfast belief in me that I am the person I am today and without her unwavering support this research would not have been possible. To the current and future generations of Polish Catholic Holocaust survivors, it is my hope that the past will not be forgotten and the individual, familial, and collective wounds created by the Holocaust will be acknowledged and eventually healed. And, that the day will come where we will live in a world that refuses to tolerate genocides and recognizes that the atrocities perpetuated through genocides and cultural oppression—affect us all—in a multitude of ways, for we all suffer and are in need of healing. iv ACKNOWLEDGMENTS It is with the deepest gratitude and great respect that I thank my committee: Dr. Philip Cushman, Dr. Mary Wieneke, and Dr. Samantha Slaughter. I would like to give special acknowledgement to my Dissertation Chair, Dr. Philip Cushman, whom has been an unwavering beacon of hope and encouragement. He has taken great care in supporting me in engaging in critical thought and giving attention to the research processes. His constant encouragement to ponder the sociopolitical and cultural influences on my work has afforded me tremendous growth. I would like to offer special acknowledgment and deep gratitude to all of my participants. My deepest gratitude is extended to the six Polish Catholic Holocaust survivors interviewed for this study, without their courage and willingness to face their past and share their experiences this research would not have been possible. I want to acknowledge the Polish Catholics throughout the world, both living and deceased, who suffered persecution by the Nazi regime and whose stories remain untold. It is my hope that this research will shed light on their experiences and make visible a group of peoples who have suffered in silence and without acknowledgement. I would like to offer acknowledgment to all the people who were targeted and persecuted by the Nazi regime, (that is, to the Jews, to the homosexuals, to the Roma, to the Political dissents, to people of color, to the disabled, and to those whose suffering I am unaware). v I hope that the day will come where others will bear witness and bring awareness to all who suffered at the hands of the Nazi and Stalin regimes. Above all, I will not forget. I promise to remember. And, I pledge to bring visibility to the persecution and suffering as well as the healing and survival of Polish Catholics during and after the Holocaust. vi Table of Contents Page Dedication……………………………………………………………………………………………………….iv Acknowledgments………………………………………………………………………..............................v I. BACKGROUND…………………………………………………………………...................................1 II. METHOD…………………………………………………………………….………………………….58 III. RESULTS…………………………………………………………………….………………………….80 IV. DISCUSSION…………………………………………………………………….………………………167 References…………………………………………………………………….……………………………..194 Appendix A: Study Description Script…………………………………………………………….205 Appendix B: Pre-screening Questions…………………………………………………………….207 Appendix C: Informed Consent………………………………………………………………………209 Appendix D: Participant Demographic Form…………………………………………………..212 Appendix E: Interview Guide………………………………………...………………………………..216 Appendix F: Interview Schedule ……………………………………………………......................218 Appendix G: Photograph of Three Gifts Given to Researcher……………………………225 Appendix H: Photograph of Handmade Pillowcase………………………………………….227 Appendix I: Photograph of Handmade Potholder……………………………………………229 Appendix J: Photograph of Handmade Napkin Holder……………………………………..231 vii 1 Overview of Problem The Holocaust was the systematic, state-sponsored murder of an estimated 6 million Jews; 1.9 million Poles Catholics and Christians; 220,000 Roma (Gypsies); and other Slavic peoples. The Nazi regime persecuted the Jews, Poles, Roma, and Russians based on an ideology that deemed these people as racially inferior; other groups such as homosexuals, the disabled, Russians, Communists, Socialists, and Jehovah’s Witnesses were persecuted based on differences in behavioral, political, and ideological grounds (United States Holocaust Museum, 2012). During World War II, it is estimated that 3 million Polish Catholics and Christians were murdered. The German Reich forcibly deported 2.0 million Polish citizens of Catholic ancestry to Germany for forced labor, 1.7 million were imprisoned in concentration camps in Siberia, and 100,000 were exterminated at Auschwitz (Schwartz, 2012). The lived experience and after-effects of Holocaust-related trauma have been examined with Jewish Holocaust survivors, (e.g., Chodoff, 1997, Niederland, 1968), their children (e.g., Chaitin, 2000; Lev-Wiesel, 2007), and their grandchildren (e.g., Chaitin 2002; Rubinstein, Cutter, & Templer, 1990). Currently, there are few psychological studies aimed at examining the effects of the Holocaust on the lives of Polish non-Jewish survivors. To date, there are no studies within Western psychology that address the effects of the Holocaust on Polish Catholics and/or their