title: Connectedness, social support and internalising emotional and behavioural problems in adolescents displaced by the Chechen conflict.
abstract: The study investigated factors associated with internalising emotional and behavioural problems among adolescents displaced during the most recent Chechen conflict. A cross-sectional survey (N=183) examined relationships between social support and connectedness with family, peers and community in relation to internalising problems. Levels of internalising were higher in displaced Chechen youth compared to published norms among non-referred youth in the United States and among Russian children not affected by conflict. Girls demonstrated higher problem scores compared to boys. Significant inverse correlations were observed between family, peer and community connectedness and internalising problems. In multivariate analyses, family connectedness was indicated as a significant predictor of internalising problems, independent of age, gender, housing status and other forms of support evaluated. Sub-analyses by gender indicated stronger protective relationships between family connectedness and internalising problems in boys. Results indicate that family connectedness is an important protective factor requiring further exploration by gender in war-affected adolescents.
authors.affiliation: Department of Global Health and Population, François-Xavier Bagnoud Center for Health and Human Rights, Harvard School of Public Health, 651 Huntington Avenue, FXB Building 7th Floor, Room 709D, Boston, MA 02115, United States. Theresa_Betancourt@Harvard.edu
authors.forename: Theresa S
authors.initials: TS
authors.lastname: Betancourt
authors.forename: Carmel
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Salhi
authors.forename: Stephen
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Buka
authors.forename: Jennifer
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Leaning
authors.forename: Gillian
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Dunn
authors.forename: Felton
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Earls
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002653:Child Behavior Disorders / Q000523:psychology*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000523:psychology*; D012036:Refugees / Q000523:psychology*; D012426:Russia; D012944:Social Support; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000523:psychology*; D014857:Warfare