| Abstract
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This study explores the relationship between resilience and culture in the case of political violence in Israel. Unstructured interviews were conducted with 10 Israeli Jewish young adults living in the United States. The research was approached from a social constructionist viewpoint, which assumes that successful adaptation is dependent on meaning drawn from the individual and social context. Participants were asked to reflect on childhood experiences including at least one potentially traumatic event. Findings point to three clusters that included common themes. The first cluster was collective support and collective responsibility with themes family, community, responsibility to nation, humor/fun, remembering and honoring the dead and direct social support through talking about feelings, tension between duty to collective versus self and, through difficulties with shared mood and anxiety . The second strongest cluster was resilience through avoidance, included the themes adjusting expectations, accepting 'What can you do?', avoidance of talking and expressing feelings, avoidance of panic and anxiety, minimizing disruption by keeping to routines and getting back to normal , and keeping perspective by comparing to something worse . The third cluster, resilience through active engagement included the themes actively seeking practical information, staying alert and actively strategizing for self-protection, and actively participating in government and military security procedures . These clusters were discussed in terms of collectivism, sense of purpose, and active and repressive coping strategies. The strengths and weaknesses of these processes were discussed. Implications for intervention and suggestions for future research were offered.
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