2026/07/01 by Kate C. McLean, Nic M. Weststrate
paper · doi:10.1002/acp.70251
ABSTRACT In this article, we reflect on the impact of Robyn Fivush and two of her most generative scholarly legacies: the importance of intergenerational storytelling and the complexities of narrating trauma. We marry these domains to examine the intergenerational transmission of trauma in a qualitative study in which trauma was shared between three dyads of LGBTQ+ elders and youth in a lab‐based storytelling encounter. The cases reveal how storytelling can function as a developmental resource that promotes healing and connection, as well as how the sharing of trauma can impede healing, perpetuate harm, and challenge intergenerational connection. We show how past and current trauma are an inherent component of LGBTQ+ intergenerational connection, often rooted in cultural and internalized anti‐LGBTQ+ stigma. We discuss factors that may influence whether intergenerational storytelling reinforces trauma or strengthens individuals and communities through mutual sharing and understanding, facilitating a sense of intergenerational collective strength, resilience, and resistance.