Resilience in Palestinian Adolescents Living in Gaza

• Published in: Psychological trauma 2017-01, Vol.9 (1), p.36-43
• Main Authors: Aitcheson, Rozanna J., Abu-Bader, Soleman H., Howell, Mary K., Khalil, Deena, Elbedour, Salman
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adaptation, Psychological; Adolescent; Adolescent Behavior - ethnology; Adolescent Characteristics; Anxiety; Anxiety - ethnology; Depression - ethnology; Exposure to Violence; Female; Human; Humans; Major Depression; Male; Middle East - ethnology; Optimism - psychology; Political Violence; Politics; Refugees - psychology; Resilience, Psychological; Self-Control - psychology; Sense of Coherence; Social Identification
• ISSN: 1942-9681; 1942-969X
• DOI: 10.1037/tra0000153

Objective: The pathogenic impact of ongoing political conflict on children and adolescents has been well-documented in the literature. The present study, by contrast, examined the factors that support adolescent health and utilized a salutogenic model to examine prevalence of depression and anxiety and predictors of resilience in a group of adolescents attending secondary school in Gaza. Method: There were 335 Palestinian adolescents (n = 335) enrolled in 11th and 12th grades in secondary schools in Gaza refugee camps completed the Beck Depression Inventory, the Beck Anxiety Inventory, and self-report measures assessing coping skills, self-regulation, optimism, parenting style, family sense of coherence, national identity, ethnic identity, and other demographic variables. Results: Participants with stronger national identity, stronger family sense of coherence, greater self-regulation, and more optimism reported less depressive and anxious symptoms. In a logistic regression analysis, significant predictors of resilience (minimal to no anxiety and depression, n = 135) were age, optimism, family sense of coherence, ethnic identity, self-regulation, and coping skills. Conclusion: These findings indicate that older age, optimism, perception of family seeing the world as comprehensible, manageable, and meaningful, stronger Arab ethnic identity, greater self-regulation and stronger coping skills promote adolescent adaptation and health. Salutogenesis frames information about how resilient youth living in high threat environments may respond to preventative community-based behavioral health interventions as well as treatment of depression, anxiety, and other psychological distress among adolescents living with ongoing violence.