A parricidal memory: Flanders' memorial universe as product and producer of Belgian history

This article examines how the Belgian patriotic collective memory in Flanders during the 20th century was supplanted by a Flemish Nationalist counter memory. The article starts with a semiotic analysis of some concrete commemorative practices and discourses surrounding the brothers Van Raemdonck, two Flemish soldiers who died during the First World War and were venerated as Flemish heroes. Next, these cases are situated in some larger themes and tendencies dominating the intellectual construction of Flemish National collective memory during the 19th and 20th centuries.

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Psychotherapy of Holocaust survivors – group process analysis

Aim. The paper discusses the effectiveness of group psychotherapy addressed to Holocaust survivors.
 

Methods. The paper is based on many years of its authors’ experience in running such psychotherapy groups. Common psychological problems of the group members and the group dynamics are being discussed and illustrated with the example of work in the group.
 

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De oorlog als beleving: over de musealisering en enscenering van Holocaust-erfgoed

Wie nog maar enkele jaren geleden de oorlog een beleving had genoemd, had vast en zeker op veel scepsis kunnen rekenen. Dat ligt echter vandaag de dag heel anders. Vrijwel dagelijks worden we via de media op de hoogte gebracht van de acties van ‘onze jongens’ in Irak en Afghanistan. De nationale trots spat van het televisiescherm wanneer het gaat om onze bijdrage in de War on Terror (2001)...

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He Has Seen War 2011 (full)

He Has Seen War is a documentary featuring surviving veterans of Easy Company and the 1st Marine Division, whose stories are told in Band of Brothers and The Pacific. From their initial steps at reintegrating into civilian life to the lasting impact the war had on each of their lives, He Has Seen War features veterans and their families relaying their own unique stories. Complemented by renowned historian and author Donald L.

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Imperialist Air War. East German academic Research and Memory Politics reflected in the Work of Olaf Groehler

This chapter analyses the work of GDR historians on the air war and the Allied bombing campaign, particularly the work of Olaf Groehler, the leading GDR expert on the air war. The chapter situates Groehler's work within official GDR memory politics and explores Groehler's work as an attempt to distance himself from both the dominant SED narrative as well as West German apologetic tendencies. It argues, however, that Groehler ultimately remained within the parameters of a GDR 'victim discourse' by shifting German responsibility onto 'fascist imperialism', or AngloAmerican imperialism

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Can we facilitate posttraumatic growth in combat veterans?

The Comprehensive Soldier Fitness program, currently under development for the U.S. Army, will include a component designed to increase the possibilities for posttraumatic growth in the aftermath of combat. In this article, the author's briefly review studies that provide evidence for this phenomenon in combat veterans, and they suggest elements that such a program might include to facilitate posttraumatic growth. They urge the Army to conduct randomized controlled trials testing the efficacy of the program prior to its implementation.

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THE FUTURE OF HOLOCAUST STUDIES

Holocaust awareness has become a worldwide phenomenon, and an international free republic of Holocaust researchers has emerged. Among long-term trends in the field of Holocaust studies are the universalization of victimhood and the extension of the circle of perpetrators. Present trends include Holocaust history as local history, the integration of perpetrator and victim histories, and the explanation of perpetrator behavior in ideological terms.

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Surviving the Holocaust : a meta-analysis of the long-term sequelae of a genocide

The current set of meta-analyses elucidates the long-term psychiatric, psychosocial, and physical consequences of the Holocaust for survivors. In 71 samples with 12,746 participants Holocaust survivors were compared with their counterparts (with no Holocaust background) on physical health, psychological wellbeing, posttraumatic stress symptoms, psychopathological symptomatology, cognitive functioning, and stressrelated physiology.

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Can Asylum-Seekers with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Be Successfully Treated? A Randomized Controlled Pilot Study

Rates of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are exceptionally high among asylum-seekers. Reportedly, stressors caused by the asylum procedure and psychological consequences of torture contribute to the maintenance of symptoms and interfere with treatment. In a pilot randomized controlled trial, the authors examined the efficacy of trauma-focused treatment in 32 asylum-seekers with PTSD resulting from state-sponsored violence and other traumatic events. Narrative exposure therapy (NET) was compared with treatment as usual (TAU), with a focus on stabilization and psychoactive medication.

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Bringing politics back in. The introduction of 'the performative power' of counterterrorism

While it is sensible that governments and academics endeavour to assess the effectiveness of counterterrorism policies, this article argues that it is almost impossible to measure arithmetically the outcome of counterterrorism efforts for a variety of reasons. However, this does not mean that the effect of governmental policy cannot and should not be assessed. This article argues that it is not necessarily the policy measures and their intended results as such, but much more the way in which they are presented and perceived, that determine the overall effect of the policy in question.

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