Potentially traumatic events, coping strategies and associations with mental health and well-being measures among conflict-affected youth in Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.
Potentially traumatic events, coping strategies and associations with mental health and well-being measures among conflict-affected youth in Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.
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DOI：
10.1186/s41256-016-0007-6
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发表时间：
2016
影响因子：
8.7
通讯作者：
Glass N
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Cherewick M;Doocy S;Tol W;Burnham G;Glass N
冲突和冲突后环境中的青年面临各种可能造成创伤的事件，影响他们的心理健康和福祉。本研究的目的是探讨应对策略受冲突影响的青年暴露于潜在的创伤事件和心理症状和福祉的关系，在刚果民主共和国（DRC）。共有434名男女青年（10至15岁）与一名经过培训的刚果访谈员一起完成了数据收集工作。调查工具包括对潜在创伤性事件的暴露程度的测量、经调整的应对策略清单以及对心理社会困扰和福祉的测量。探索性因素分析用于确定应对策略，分层回归用于评估应对策略如何与心理症状（包括内化和外化问题）以及幸福结果（包括亲社会行为和自尊）相关。探索性因素分析提出了四种应对策略：问题关注策略、情绪关注策略、回避策略和信仰策略。以问题为中心的应对策略与男孩和女孩更大的内化和外化问题以及更低的亲社会行为相关。然而，当以问题为中心的策略与以情绪为中心的应对策略一起使用时，结果是女孩的内化问题较少，男孩和女孩的外化问题较少。注意力集中，回避和信仰为基础的策略与更好的自尊。这些结果表明，应对策略，心理症状和福祉之间的复杂关系，矛盾的证据表明，以问题为重点的战略有利于心理健康，而以情绪为重点的战略损害心理健康，特别是在冲突和冲突后环境。研究结果表明，应对灵活性或使用多种应对策略可能对改善心理健康和幸福感特别有用。研究结果突出表明，受冲突影响的人口需要对应对战略有具体的了解。
Youth in conflict and post-conflict settings are exposed to a variety of potentially-traumatic events that impact their mental health and well-being. The purposes of this study were to examine coping strategies among conflict-affected youth exposed to potentially-traumatic events and the relationship to psychological symptoms and well-being in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). A total of 434 male and female youth (ages 10–15 years) completed data collection with a trained Congolese interviewer. The survey instrument included measures of exposure to potentially traumatic events, an adapted coping strategies checklist, and measures of psychosocial distress and well-being. Exploratory factor analyses was used to identify coping strategies and Hierarchical regression was used to assess how coping strategies were associated with psychological symptoms including internalizing and externalizing problems and well-being outcomes including prosocial behavior and self-esteem. Exploratory Factor analysis suggested four coping strategies; problem-focused, emotion-focused, avoidance and faith-based strategies. Problem-focused coping strategies were associated with greater internalizing and externalizing problems and lower prosocial behavior in both boys and girls. However, when problem-focused strategies were used with emotion-focused coping strategies, the result was fewer internalizing problems in girls and fewer externalizing problems in boys and girls. Emotion-focused, avoidance and faith based strategies were associated with better self-esteem. These results suggest a complex relationship between coping strategies, psychological symptoms and well-being and contradict evidence that problem-focused strategies benefit mental health while emotion-focused strategies harm mental health, particularly in conflict and post-conflict settings. The results suggest coping flexibility, or use of multiple coping strategies may be particularly useful to improving mental health and well-being. The need for context specific understandings of coping strategies in conflict-affected populations is highlighted by the results of the study.