United States Civilian Prisoner of War Study

Purpose: To report the lived experience of long term survivors of World War II’s Santo Tomas Internment Camp with a focus on health.

Methods: A Hermeneutic Phenomenological method was used for this study.  The study was approved by the Institutional Review Board at California State University East Bay (Protocol Number: CSUEB-IRB-2015-101-F).  The research team coordinated with the leadership of the Bay Area Civilian Prisoners of War to recruit participants who were former internees of Santo Tomas Internment Camp during World War II.  Invitations to participate in the study were sent to former internees slated to attend a 2015 event in the Philippines dedicated to celebrating the camp's February 1945 liberation.  Participants were consented and provided the research team a completed demographic information form prior to having an interview scheduled.  Interviews were audio-recorded and transcribed.  As long term survivors of this traumatic experience they have demonstrated resilience.  Interviews involved open-ended questions inquiring about the experience of the survivors in the internment camp and after liberation with a focus on health related behavior and beliefs.  Generally, inquiry occurred about the health of the participants during their time in the internment camp and their health after liberation from the camp.  Inquiry about health included questions soliciting information about their physiological health and their psychological well-being.  Perceived coping mechanisms of the participants was also an area of inquiry.  The primary investigator maintained open communication channels with members of this community to insure that interpretation of results was consistent with the lived experience associated with the Prisoner of War experience. The research team includes Dr. Daniel M. Doolan, Dr. Monika Eckfield, Professor Jacqueline Willetts, and Dr. Elizabeth Halifax.

Results: From January to April 2015, 11 recorded interviews occurred with former Allied civilian Prisoners of War from World War II’s Santo Tomas Internment Camp in Manila Philippines.  They included 9 Americans, 1 Canadian, and 1 British internment camp survivors.  The mean and median birth-year of these participants is 1934 and 1933 respectively.  All were in the internment camp for at least 21 months with most interned for over three years.  Detail associated with the participants' perceptions of health and coping as it relates to their experience as Prisoners of War will be reported. 

Conclusion: Little research has occurred relevant to former civilian Prisoners of War.  This Phenomenological Study is one of very few studies relevant to civilian Prisoners of War and, given that all participants are long term survivors of a World War II internment camp, the perceptions, health behaviors, and beliefs of these survivors provides information relevant to resilience research and research associated with survivors of traumatic events.