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Browsing Refugee Research Network by Subject "Adolescents"
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Item Open Access Effect of Trauma Due to War on Dissociative Symptoms and Resilience among Palestinian Adolescents in the Gaza Strip(Arab Journal of Psychiatry, 2014-11) Ghannam, Reem Taisir; Thabet, AbdelazizAim: The present study examined the effect of war trauma on occurrence of dissociative symptoms and the role of resilience among Palestinian adolescents in the Gaza Strip. Method: N=400 adolescents (179 boys, 221 girls) were randomly selected from 10 schools in five areas in the Gaza Strip. The Gaza Traumatic Checklist, Dissociative Symptoms Scale for Adolescents, and Resilience Scale for Adolescents were used for assessment and socio-demographic data collected. Result: Regardless of gender, all participants reported an average of nine traumatic events regardless of family income, number of siblings, parent education and work status. The mean score for dissociative symptoms in girls was 75.67 vs. 73.65 in boys. No statistically significant differences in dissociative symptoms according to gender, age, place of residence, parent education and work status. Mean resilience was 112.18, individual resources, e.g. personal skills, social skills, and peer support was 44.06; physical and psychological caregiving by primary caregivers was 27.42, and contextual resources including spiritual, cultural and educational resources mean was 37.42. No statistically significant differences in the total resilience and subscales according to socio-demographic factors of gender, age, type of residence and parents work, whereas, resilience was higher in those with fewer siblings. There was a statistically significant negative relationship between dissociative symptoms and total resilience, individual resources, physical and psychological caregiving, and contextual resources. There was a statistically significant positive relationship between traumatic events and total trauma and total resilience, individual resources, and contextual resources. Clinical implications: Palestinian adolescents have been victims of continuous trauma with increased risk of psychopathology such as dissociative symptoms. Such symptoms negatively impacted upon adolescent resilience when handling adversity. Findings suggest the need for psychosocial interventions that reflect public health and child developmental requirements. Engaging children in interventions that are community-based recreational and cultural activities in war-affected populations have been found useful to heal.Item Open Access Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and Resilience among Palestinian Adolescents in the Gaza Strip(Arab Journal of Psychiatry, 2019-11) Alibwaini, Issa; Thabet, AbdelazizObjective: The current study investigated posttraumatic stress disorder and resilience among adolescents in the Gaza Strip after the 52-day war in 2014. Method: N=408 adolescents, aged between 13 and 18 years, were recruited from the five governorates of the Gaza Strip with the help of local community-based organizations. Four self-report questionnaires were completed, including a sociodemographic questionnaire, the Gaza Traumatic Events Checklist, the PTSD Scale-DSM-IV, and Child and Youth Resilience Measure. Results: The most frequently reported traumatic experience was seeing mutilated bodies on television. Nearly half of the participants had experienced at least 10 traumatic events and 19.1% showed full criteria of PTSD. Getting an education was recorded as the most influential factor in the development of resilience. The total number of experienced traumatic events was positively correlated with PTSD and negatively correlated with resilience. PTSD was negatively correlated with resilience factors. Conclusion: Adolescents living in armed conflict zones are at risk of experiencing traumatic events, which can lead to PTSD. Resilience plays a significant role in reducing the negative effect of trauma and PTSD. Further investigation, particularly on resilience factors, is required.Item Open Access Trauma, PTSD, anxiety and coping strategies among Palestinian adolescents exposed to war in Gaza(Arab Journal of Psychiatry, 2014-05) Thabet, Abdelaziz; EL-Buhaisi, Omar; Vostanis, PanosAim: The present study investigated types of traumatic events experienced by Palestinian adolescents exposed to war in Gaza in relation to PTSD, anxiety and coping strategies. Methods: The sample comprised 358 adolescents aged 15 to 18 years; 158 boys (44.1%) and 200 girls (55.9%). Self-administrated questionnaires included Gaza Traumatic Events Checklist, Spence Children’s Anxiety Scale, Posttraumatic Stress Disorder according to DSM-IV scale, and the Adolescent-Coping Orientation for Problem experiences Scale. Results: The mean number of traumatic events reported by adolescents was 13.34 with 90.8% witnessing mutilated bodies on TV, 88.5% exposed to heavy artillery shelling, 86.6% seeing evidence of shelling, and 86.0% hearing sonic sounds from jetfighters. The mean total anxiety was 41.18, obsessive compulsive subscale was 8.90, generalized anxiety subscale was 4.46, social phobia was 6.99, separation anxiety was 6.16, physical injury fears was 5.48, and panic/Agoraphobia was 5.4. Girls reported more anxiety problems than boys; 11.8% of all participants reported no PTSD while 24.2% reported fewer than two symptom clusters. Criterion for partial PTSD was met by 34.31% while 29.8% reported symptoms meeting DSM-IV-TR criteria for full PTSD. Girls also reported more PTSD symptoms than boys. Participants reported coping by developing social support, investing in close friends, and/or engaging in demanding activities. Those reporting traumatic experiences developed less social support and requested more professional support while participants with PTSD coped by ventilating feelings, developing social support, avoiding problems. Participants with fewer PTSD symptoms tended towards solving their family problems while those with anxiety reported ventilating feelings, developing social support, and engaging in demanding activities. Participants with less anxiety sought more spiritual support.