Trauma, PTSD, Anxiety and Coping Strategies among Palestinians Adolescents Exposed to War in Gaza

Aim: 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.