title: Exposure to political conflict and violence and posttraumatic stress in Middle East youth: protective factors.
abstract: We examine the role of family- and individual-level protective factors in the relation between exposure to ethnic-political conflict and violence and posttraumatic stress among Israeli and Palestinian youth. Specifically, we examine whether parental mental health (lack of depression), positive parenting, children's self-esteem, and academic achievement moderate the relation between exposure to ethnic-political conflict/violence and subsequent posttraumatic stress (PTS) symptoms. We collected three waves of data from 901 Israeli and 600 Palestinian youths (three age cohorts: 8, 11, and 14 years old; approximately half of each gender) and their parents at 1-year intervals. Greater cumulative exposure to ethnic-political conflict/violence across the first 2 waves of the study predicted higher subsequent PTS symptoms even when we controlled for the child's initial level of PTS symptoms. This relation was significantly moderated by a youth's self-esteem and by the positive parenting received by the youth. In particular, the longitudinal relation between exposure to violence and subsequent PTS symptoms was significant for low self-esteem youth and for youth receiving little positive parenting but was non-significant for children with high levels of these protective resources. Our findings show that youth most vulnerable to PTS symptoms as a result of exposure to ethnic-political violence are those with lower levels of self-esteem and who experience low levels of positive parenting. Interventions for war-exposed youth should test whether boosting self-esteem and positive parenting might reduce subsequent levels of PTS symptoms.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH 43403, USA. edubow@bgnet.bgsu.edu
authors.forename: Eric F
authors.initials: EF
authors.lastname: Dubow
authors.forename: L Rowell
authors.initials: LR
authors.lastname: Huesmann
authors.forename: Paul
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Boxer
authors.forename: Simha
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Landau
authors.forename: Shira
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Dvir
authors.forename: Khalil
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Shikaki
authors.forename: Jeremy
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ginges
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D018912:Arabs / Q000523:psychology; D002648:Child; D003220:Conflict, Psychological; D004522:Educational Status; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007406:Interview, Psychological; D007557:Israel; D008297:Male; D010290:Parents / Q000523:psychology; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D012307:Risk Factors; D012649:Self Concept; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000209:etiology* / Q000523:psychology; D014754:Violence / Q000523:psychology*