"Survivors were either over-protective or clingy because they were fearful that something would happen to their children or they were dismissive and pushed their children away in an attempt to prevent any future hurt," said lead researcher Janine Beck, a PhD student at the Queensland University of Technology.

"These parenting patterns are highly likely to be repeated, so the cycle of trauma transmission continues."

Beck found that depression, anxiety, and trust issues were more prevalent in the descendents of Holocaust survivors compared to the general population.

The probability of experiencing depression seems to be linked to the magnitude of trauma -- long-term inmates of concentration camps and those who were the sole survivor in their family having the worst symptoms.

Country of origin also seems to be a factor, with survivors from Eastern Europe experiencing more problems than those from other regions.

The research is unfortunately relevant in the present day as conflicts in countries such as Iraq could mean that their traumas could similarly affect future generations.

"Undoubtedly, survivors and their descendants have been unable to reach their full potential in life," Beck said.

"Civilians and their descendants traumatised because of more recent conflicts such as in Iraq, Yugoslavia, Rwanda and Darfur are likely to be affected in similar ways."