New study Violent influences damage thinking in the long term

Memory and ability to concentrate suffer from violent impressions
Although we live in a relatively secure society, here too many people are victims of violence each year. Even more often people in the crisis countries of this world are experiencing the most severe forms of violence. The experienced traumatic impressions of violence have a far-reaching effect on those affected, which is also reflected in an impairment of their cognitive abilities.

"Even decades later, people who have been exposed to violence can still have worsened short-term memory and impaired concentration if they recall these experiences," the Institute for the World Economy (IfW) reports, citing a recent empirical study Researchers from the IfW were involved. The study results were published in the journal "Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences" (PNAS).

Violence can affect the cognitive abilities for decades. (Image: fpic / fotolia.com)

Effects of the violence experience on cognitive abilities studied
According to the researchers, the current study clearly shows for the first time the negative consequences of violence on cognitive abilities and shows that they can persist for a very long time. In the empirical study of more than 500 civilians from Colombia who were victims of gang violence or civil war, the scientists analyzed the effects of violence impressions on the ability to concentrate and memory. The subjects were asked to recall their experience of violence and then completed various tests. According to the researchers, they showed "significantly worse cognitive abilities than people who should think of a neutral or pleasant experience of the time." And this, although the violence experienced by the subjects in some cases lagged up to 14 years.

Brain generally reacts very sensitively to violence impressions
"A similar deterioration of cognitive abilities, the researchers could also prove in persons who had not personally experienced violence, but extreme violence should be in mind," says the IfW. Thus, a repeat of the study with German students, who should think of extreme violence such as the terrorist attack in Paris in November 2015, led to comparable results. "The human brain seems to be extremely sensitive to the effects of violence," says Gianluca Grimalda from the Institute for the World Economy.

Cognitive abilities vital
All in all, people who had experienced violence and consciously demonstrated it in their empirical investigation showed an impairment of short-term memory and ability to concentrate even decades after the events. They performed significantly worse in the respective tests than a comparison group. An extremely questionable result, since, according to the IfW expert Grimalda, "cognitive abilities are fundamental to personal well-being and to success in school and work". In children, better cognitive abilities are associated with higher life expectancy, income and health expectancy as well as less chance of delinquency.

The current study results make it clear that "experiences of violence can massively worsen the life prospects of a person," emphasizes Grimalda. It is therefore very important to support victims of violence in a professional Traumabewältigung that help them to leave the experience behind. (Fp)