Effects of late-life captivity: preliminary findings following the 7 October attack.

Background

Posttraumatic responses (PTR, i.e. posttraumatic stress disorder [PTSD], complex PTSD, prolonged grief, depression, and anxiety) have not been examined following late-life captivity. Most of the captivity literature focuses on young prisoners of war and, to a lesser extent, on younger civilians.

Objective

To assess PTR levels in older ex-captives and potential risk factors for elevated PTR following late-life captivity.

Methods

We assessed 26 Jewish Israeli older adults (mean age = 82.11±7.23, from Kibbutzim [rural close-knit agricultural communities] in the Gaza envelope) who were exposed directly to the 7 October attack. Half the participants were ex-captives (released from Hamas captivity), and another 13 were non-captive displaced survivors. Groups were comparable on exposure variables and most demographics.

Results

Except for ex-captives exhibiting higher prolonged grief levels, participants reported similar low PTR levels with no group differences. Furthermore, ex-captives who experienced malicious maltreatment during captivity showed higher PTR levels. Finally, two unique correlations were found only in ex-captives: Current loneliness correlated with higher prolonged grief levels, and current lower sense-of-safety correlated with higher PTSD levels.

Conclusion

Results are discussed via a gero-traumatology perspective. The data are aligned with the inoculation hypothesis, suggesting that older adults are resilient even following exposure to extreme trauma. Risk factors for elevated PTR were identified, suggesting that captivity is not a monolithic entity, yet it may still distinctly differ from other forms of trauma in terms of its psychological concomitants. Although preliminary, the results illuminate the effects of extreme trauma on older adults.