Mental health and resiliency in Israel after 44 months of terrorism
Author Information
Author(s): Avi Bleich, Marc Gelkopf, Yuval Melamed, Zahava Solomon
Primary Institution: Lev Hasharon Mental Health Center
Hypothesis
What are the psychological effects of 44 months of ongoing terrorism on Israeli citizens?
Conclusion
The study found that while some mental health measures improved, others showed increased distress, indicating a complex response to prolonged terrorism.
Supporting Evidence
- 11.2% of participants were directly exposed to a terrorist incident.
- 9% met symptom criteria for PTSD.
- Women and Arabs reported higher traumatic stress-related symptoms.
- Participants reported feeling less depressed compared to previous studies.
Takeaway
This study looked at how people in Israel felt after living with terrorism for a long time, finding that some felt better while others felt worse.
Methodology
A telephone survey was conducted with a representative sample of 702 adult Israeli residents, with 501 agreeing to participate.
Potential Biases
Self-reported symptoms may not reflect clinically significant distress.
Limitations
The study lacked pre-Intifada data and could not determine if non-participants had higher distress levels.
Participant Demographics
The sample included 43.3% men and 51.7% women, with 85.8% Jews and 14.2% Israeli Arabs.
Statistical Information
P-Value
0.05
Statistical Significance
p<0.05
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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