Parental Resilience in Contexts of Political Violence: A Systematic Scoping Review of 45 Years of Research.

Families suffer in particular ways during the violence and targeted deprivation of freedom and resources within political violence (PV), which includes wars, armed conflicts, and military occupations-all part of political violence (PV). While evidence is accumulating about the disproportionate impacts of PV on parents and children, we lack a clear, globally integrated understanding of how families suffer-and survive-PV. There is an urgent need to synthesize existing work to refine our understanding of parental experiences within PV-with particular attention to both how PV creates suffering for parents, and how parents strategize, caring for their families within the most horrendous of circumstances. In this systematic scoping review, authors explore how political violence impacts parenting. Using predetermined search strategies and inclusion criteria (peer-reviewed, empirical articles, published in English), searches within multiple databases, and tests of interrater reliability, 112 articles (quantitative, qualitative, and mixed method) were identified. Authors organized and coded findings, determined common themes, and built a conceptual model connecting and integrating findings. Findings point to two crucial areas of parenting within PV: parenting efficacy and parenting practices, demonstrating how these are simultaneously compromised by and amplified within PV. Results uncover how much parenting within PV is intertwined with parental psychological and social well-being, and that parents cope with a variety of internal and external resources, including culture, community, religion, activism, flight, and emotional and logistical reconfiguration. Implications include that, within and after PV, interventions must focus on parental well-being, as well as the social and political situatedness of parents.

Psychological responses to political hostility: a study on aggression, bullying, and well-being in Qatar.

In 2017, the Gulf crisis led to a blockade that severely restricted Qatar's air, land, and sea access. This political crisis had far-reaching consequences, particularly affecting cross-national families and children. This qualitative analysis explores the effects of the blockade's political instability on individuals and families, specifically for Qatari citizens married to non-Qatari spouses and their cross-national children. Applying the General Aggression Model and Social Learning Theory, we interviewed 24 individuals residing in Qatar from nations directly affected by the crisis (Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates). Two main themes emerged: first, the characteristics of aggressive and bullying behaviour, and second, the impacts on the well-being of cross-national families. The results showed that Qatari women and their children suffered disproportionately due to gender-based citizenship rights issues. The impacts on their well-being included heightened anxiety, depression, feelings of danger, uncertainty, and division within individuals, families, and communities. Recommendations include increasing collaborative efforts between governments, educational institutions, and community-based organizations, which are crucial to addressing aggressive and bullying behaviour across all age groups fostering a more harmonious and resilient society.

The Role of Country Image on Consumers' Willingness to Pay for Imported Beefsteak in China.

In recent years, the world has experienced conflict. When political conflicts affect consumers' emotions and alter their perceptions of a country's image, it can influence their preferences. This study deconstructs the notion of a country image into multiple dimensions and examines their impact on consumers' willingness to pay for imported beef from Australia, Brazil, and the United States. Using a rank-ordered probit model and data from a survey of 935 respondents, results show that consumers' perceptions of a country's friendliness, economy, environment, and quality all have a positive and statistically significant effect on their willingness to pay for beefsteak imported from that country. Among these dimensions of the country image, the quality is the most important, followed by the economy, friendliness, and the environment. This study also finds heterogeneity in consumer perception of friendliness towards the United States, Australia, and Brazil. This study provides valuable insights for assessing the real losses resulting from a deteriorating international environment and suggests policies to enhance competitiveness in the food market.

The Experiences of People From Arab Countries in Coping with Trauma Resulting From War and Conflict in the Middle East: A Systematic Review and Meta-synthesis of Qualitative Studies.

The Middle East region has been an area of war and political conflict for several decades. There is currently limited research on the experiences of war and conflict among the individuals from Arab countries in the Middle East. The aim of this review was to systematically review and meta-synthesize qualitative literature on the experiences of individuals from Arab countries in the Middle East of going through and coping with war and political conflict. We systematically searched for relevant literature through MEDLINE, PsycINFO, CINAHL, Google Scholar, EThOS, OpenGrey, and The Arab Journal of Psychiatry. Studies selected needed to have a qualitative design reporting on the war and conflict experiences of participants aged 18 years or older from Arab countries in the Middle East. The review protocol was preregistered with PROSPERO (Ref: CRD42022314108). We identified 27 studies to be included in the final review. Four overarching themes were included in the meta-synthesis: War and conflict as life-defining experiences, experiences of hardship, coping with war and conflict, and positives out of a painful experience. Participants in the included studies reported significant distress and losing their sense of self, as well as resilience and positive growth. This review and meta-synthesis revealed the particular culturally informed experiences of individuals from Arab countries in the Middle East in processing their conflict experiences. These experiences highlight the need for culturally sensitive interventions for a population that has been under significant war-related stressors.

Understanding risk factors for severe acute malnutrition among children during war conflict in yemen.

Severe acute malnutrition (SAM) is a major public health concern in Yemen, particularly in areas affected by ongoing conflict war. SAM is defined as a very low weight for height, by visible severe wasting, or by the presence of nutritional edema. The prevalence of SAM in Yemen has increased dramatically since the onset of the conflict. Prior studies have focused on evaluating prevalence, but this novel study aimed to assess the risk factors associated with SAM prevalence. Five thousand two hundred and seventeen patients of SAM admitted at 12 sentinel hospitals were enrolled, and data were collected and analyzed. Marasmus was the most common form. Numerous risk factors contribute to the high prevalence of SAM in Yemen, including food insecurity. The current conflict has hampered food production, distribution, and access. Awareness of risk factors can prevent SAM in the general population.

Exploring the Influence of Perceived Ingroup and Outgroup Threat on Quality of Life in a Region Impacted by Protracted Conflict.

While the detrimental effects of protracted political conflict on the wellbeing of Palestinians living in the occupied Palestinian territory (oPt) are generally recognized, the impact of perceived threat on quality of life (QoL) faced from within their community (ingroup; Palestinians) and from the outgroup (Israelis) is unexplored. This cross-sectional study examined the following: (1) The status of perceptions of QoL on four domains measured by the World Health Organization Quality of Life (WHOQoL-Bref) instrument, physical health, psychological health, social relationships, and environment, among Palestinian adults (n = 709) living in the Gaza Strip; (2) The associations between perceived ingroup threat (PIT) and QoL on the four domains; (3) The associations between perceived outgroup threat (POT) and QoL on the four domains. Multivariable linear regression models revealed PIT was negatively associated with QoL in each of the four domains (p < 0.001). POT was positively associated with QoL in three of the four domains: physical health (p < 0.001), psychological health (p < 0.001), and social relationships (p < 0.001). This study contributes valuable insights into how QoL is viewed by a group experiencing collective existential threat. The findings expand the limited recognition of the reciprocal roles of perceived threat from the ingroup and outgroup on the QoL of vulnerable populations.

Political violence and posttraumatic stress symptoms among Palestinians: The mediating roles of sense of belongingness and loneliness.

The current study investigated the correlation between political violence and posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) and whether the sense of belongingness (SOB) and loneliness mediate the correlation between the two variables among Palestinians living in a society characterised by high political violence and prolonged traumatic events. The study sample consisted of 590 Palestinian adults, consisting of 360 men and 230 women, and were recruited using non-probabilistic convenience sampling methods from a village in the northern region of the occupied Palestinian territories. This study suggests a positive correlation between political violence and PTSS, a positive correlation between loneliness and PTSS, and a negative correlation between SOB and PTSS. SOB and loneliness mediated the correlation between political violence and trauma-related symptoms.

Does political conflict tilt finance-renewable energy dynamics in Africa? Accounting for the multi-dimensional approach to financial development and threshold effect of political conflict.

In order to shed empirical light on the impact of the multi-dimensional decomposition of financial development indicators on renewable energy usage, this study investigates the threshold effect of political conflict on finance-energy dynamics in Africa. The research output relies on a panel of 46 African nations from 2010 to 2020, using IV-GMM estimators that are robust to cross-sectional dependence and allow for heterogeneous slope coefficients. The results of direct, indirect, and threshold equations show that i.) Financial development indicators spur renewable energy consumption, while political conflict drags it. ii.) There is a threshold at which financial development could spur renewable energy in some regions of Africa, and the tendency of financial development to maintain such capacity is conditioned on the accessibility of financial facilities and political conflict/stability within a specific range of threshold values. iii.) the threshold level assessment shows that 11 countries in the panel, including Botswana, Mauritius, Cape Verde, Namibia, Seychelles, Zambia, Sao Tome and Principe, Gabon, Ghana and Benin Rep., are above the threshold level of political conflict in Africa. From a policy angle, driving up renewable energy consumption in Africa requires the government to provide enabling safety net environment for the diversification of finance options targeting innovative shifts away from traditional energy sources to the expansion of alternative renewable energy ventures.

Cardiac Surgery Development in Cameroon: Unexpected Challenges From a Socio-Political Crisis.

Despite the alarming and growing burden of cardiovascular diseases in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), there is still a huge lack of specialised institutions in the region with a mean of one cardio-surgical unit for 33 million inhabitants. Despite the numerous efforts from humanitarian organisations made in recent years, the setting up of cardio-surgical units in the region remains challenging with regards to long-term sustainability. Indeed, besides the lack of financial resources, the insufficient local expertise in addition to the inadequate health infrastructure, unpredictable threats from external factors such as recurrent conflicts and humanitarian crises are still major concerns in an environment characterised by endemic socio-political instability. In Cameroon, located in the North West Anglophone region at 500 km from the capital, the cardiac centre of Shisong (CCS) is currently the lone cardio-surgical institution of the country. Fruit of a joint initiative of two Italian Non-governmental organisations namely, Bambini Cardiopatici nel Mondo (ABCnM) and Cuore Fratello (CF), and a local religious partner, the Tertiary Sisters of Saint Francis (TSSF), the CCS was faced with in the middle of a socio-political crisis that led to the urgent need of revision of the cardio-surgical project. The current paper reviews the impact of the ongoing socio-political crisis on the CCS over the past 3 years, in terms of clinical activities, staff perspectives, and long-term sustainability.

Place Identity Strategies at University Constructed by Minority Arab-Israeli Student Groups.

The study examines the place identity of minority group Arab-Israeli students studying at a campus affiliated with the Israeli hegemonic majority, against the backdrop of the enduring Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The study analyzes place identity construction strategies utilized by these students, and the formation patterns of the new place identity reflected in everyday campus life. Subjective experiences of students were revealed through the ethnographic and qualitative phenomenological methodology and in-depth interviews. From the findings, it became apparent that life under conditions of ongoing ethnic-political conflict forces minority groups to develop strategies regarding their place identity. These strategies are fluidly employed depending on the specific context of time and place. Four place identity strategies were identified: overt, borrowed, avoidant, and ideological. Key factors contributing to the construction of each strategy were discovered: rooted place identity; gender expectations, and proactive or passive attitude to place. Implementation tactics such as individual versus collective approaches, distancing from other groups, and the flow between multiple identities were also uncovered. The study asserts that the strategies, tactics, and key factors revealed in the research contribute to place identity theory and will enrich other place identity studies of minority groups and communities in fluid contexts. Expanding theoretical discourse with respect to the strategies and tactics of place identity could promote the opportunity for integration and coexistence.

Culturally informed resilience in conflict settings: a literature review of Sumud in the occupied Palestinian territories.

Investigating culturally specific views and experiences of trauma and resilience can offer new insights that can aid distress management, meaning making, coping and resilience in adverse conditions, and inform emergency and disaster responses. Sumud is a Palestinian cultural construct and component of resilience in the occupied Palestinian territories (oPt). Sumud in Arabic refers to steadfastness or perseverance. This literature review focuses on research studies on Sumud in the oPt, with particular attention to the meaning and manifestations of Sumud, the role of non-violent resistance, and how Sumud and non-violent resistance informs resilience and coping in the context of a military occupation, protracted political conflict, and chronic adversity. The peer-reviewed literature was surveyed using the PubMed and PsycINFO databases. The findings indicate how Sumud is a central component of resilience and provides a meta-cognitive framework which Palestinians use to interpret, cope and respond to ongoing injustice and traumatic experiences, engendering a sense of purpose and meaning. It is both a value and an action that manifests via individual and collective action to protect family and community survival, wellbeing, dignity, Palestinian identity and culture, and a determination to remain on the land. The implications of this study and the relevance of the findings to mental health and disaster relief are considered.

Adaptive coping during protracted political conflict, war and military blockade in Gaza.

Identifying culturally-relevant concepts and coping mechanisms can help protect civilian wellbeing. This study explores how seven professional Palestinian university graduates in the Gaza Strip (occupied Palestinian territories) cope with war, military occupation, military blockade and the challenges of living in a conflict-affected area. Participants were interviewed to determine whether culturally specific modes of coping were used. Thematic analysis was applied. The use of resistance and more specifically sumud, 1 being steadfast and persevering, were identified alongside the motivation to persevere and other adaptive responses to living conditions. Coping strategies identified in this study include adapting, problem-solving, accepting reality, exercising patience, utilising social support, and faith in God (iman) and religion. The implications of this study and the relevance of the findings to mental health and disaster relief are considered.

Social suffering and the psychological impact of structural violence and economic oppression in an ongoing conflict setting: The Gaza Strip.

Structural violence and economic oppression (e.g. control over resources, politically engineered poverty and unemployment) are common features of warfare, yet there is a lack of research exploring the impact this has on civilian wellbeing in conflict-affected areas. This study, embedded within a human rights and community liberation psychology framework, aims to address this need by studying young Palestinian university graduates living under military blockade and occupation in the Gaza Strip. Semi-structured interviews were conducted. Thematic analysis indicated that economic and political domains adversely affected multiple aspects of civilian life and wellbeing. The findings revealed the deleterious effects of structural violence and economic oppression which created: human insecurity; poor psychological wellbeing and quality of life; existential, psychological and social suffering; humiliation; injuries to dignity; multiple losses; and led to life being experienced as 'on hold'. Local expressions and idioms to express distress were identified. The findings contributed to unique insights regarding how continual, systemic, and structural oppression can be potentially more psychologically detrimental than specific incidents of conflict and violence. The implications and the relevance of the findings to mental health and disaster relief are considered. Interventions providing human security and economic security should be prioritised.

Symbols and labels: Children's awareness of social categories in a divided society.

AIMS: How and when children develop an understanding of group boundaries have implications for conflict resolution. When social divisions are not perceptually distinct, symbols become particularly important. Framed by the Social Identity Development Theory, this study was designed to assess children's categorization of symbols with conflict-related group labels. METHOD: In Northern Ireland, 218 children (M = 8.14, SD = 1.83, range 5-11 years old) participated in a novel task designed for this study. The sample was evenly split by child gender and community background. RESULTS: Children sorted symbols above chance with both the hypothesized national (i.e., British/Irish) and ethno-political (i.e., Protestant/Catholic) labels, showing a stronger association for the former. Sorting was also stronger for ingroup symbols, compared to outgroup symbols, and increased with age. CONCLUSION: These findings reflect the potential role that a divided social world has on the development of children's understanding of conflict-related groups. The results also have implications for intergroup relations among children in divided societies.

Behavioral Responses in Youth Exposed to Natural Disasters and Political Conflict.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: The aim of this review was to focus solely on youths' behavioral responses to natural disasters and political conflicts in order to fully understand their impact and scope. RECENT FINDINGS: Recent studies in the field of trauma have shown that theoretical conceptions have moved away from a narrow focus on the individual and towards wider ecological perspectives and from a narrow focus on negative responses to trauma exposure towards positive prosocial responses. Although there is a distinction between youths' behavioral responses towards natural disasters vs. towards political conflicts, in both of these adverse situations, behavioral responses exist alongside emotional responses. Adolescents exposed to either type of adverse scenario are often able to turn their negative experiences into positive ones, take greater responsibility for themselves and others, contribute to recovery processes, and engage in prosocial behaviors. These responses must be investigated in the context of the trauma field's recent understandings regarding psychological, biological, environmental, and cultural factors.

Differences in posttraumatic stress characteristics by duration of exposure to trauma.

Ongoing exposure of civilian populations to war and terror is associated with adverse responses beyond those specified in DSM-5 for PTSD. Current PTSD assessment practices are not fully sensitive to the complex symptomatic picture observed among individuals exposed to ongoing stress and are therefore limited for use in these situations. The current survey aimed to portray the posttraumatic characteristics most salient to ongoing exposure to political conflict. A questionnaire enquiring about various aspects of the posttraumatic consequences of ongoing exposure to political conflict as compared with those associated with a single exposure to trauma was disseminated to therapists throughout the country. Participants were asked to rank 75 posttraumatic characteristics for their relevance to each trauma type (about the symptom frequency and severity) and item mean scores were compared. The sample consisted of 66 responses valid for analysis. Our findings pinpoint some of the posttraumatic characteristics most salient to ongoing exposure to political conflict and highlight the complexity of the posttraumatic picture observed in these situations. Incorporating these in post trauma assessment tools will allow for the development of standardized, reliable definitions, which in turn will allow for more accurate diagnosis and more effective treatment protocols.

Social Workers from Oppressed Minority Group Treating Majority Group's Clients: A Case Study of Palestinian Social Workers.

This article discusses minority-majority practice relations on the basis of a case study analysis of the dynamics and strategies reported by 32 Palestinian social workers living in Israel regarding their practice with Jewish clients. The described encounters reflect the charged political reality and are loaded with many tensions, fears, anger, and hatred. The results indicate five major categories, reflecting perceived mutual reactions: avoidance, power reversal, confrontation and anger, minimizing differences, and exploiting differences. The article discusses the need for a context-informed practice theory as well as training and supervision to change the emotional encounters from a potential battleground to a growth-enhancing experience within minority-majority practice relations.

Palestinian nurses' lived experiences working in the occupied West Bank.

BACKGROUND: Since the construction of the separation wall between Israel and the West Bank, Palestinians living in occupied West Bank have endured intense conflict, and severe restrictions on people's movement, trade and healthcare access, all of which resulted in spiralling poverty. These issues have created challenges for nurses that, to date, have not been explored. AIM: To explore the lived experience of Palestinian nurses working in the occupied West Bank. METHODS: Qualitative phenomenological study using interviews with Palestinian nurses working in public hospitals in the West Bank. FINDINGS: Seventeen nurses were interviewed. Despite ongoing experiences of trauma and humiliation, personal/professional role conflicts, political workplace bias and blurred role boundaries, these nurses persevered because of their commitment to caring and sense of moral duty to 'the people of this land'. DISCUSSION: Nurses in conflict areas are subject to layers of trauma. Palestinian nurses in the West Bank not only experience ongoing personal trauma, loss and humiliation of living in a conflict zone but they also experience additional professional trauma. CONCLUSION: The findings provide first-person reports of the unique challenges of nurses working in the occupied West Bank. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING PRACTICE: Understanding the experiences of nurses working in occupied territories provides authentic information for local authorities and the global healthcare community. Practice improvements must be addressed and implemented. IMPLICATIONS FOR HEALTH POLICY: Local and global organizations that mobilize support, invest in human capital, and protect human rights in areas of conflict may benefit from understanding the experiences of nurses in this study.

And I Shot Her: On War, and the Creation of Inequities in the Development of Youths' Moral Capacities.

War creates a multifaceted web of inequities that encompass most levels of the ecology of youth development. These include psychosocial inequities bearing on war-exposed youth's limited access to medical and educational services and job-training and employment opportunities, as well as some of the unique psychological sequelae of trauma exposure. In this chapter we put forth a twofold argument. First, we argue that the protracted hardships of war also create enduring psychological inequities that go beyond the well-documented psychosocial needs and psychological trauma, and encompass other aspects of youths' healthy development; these are inequities inasmuch as they represent profound alterations of the developmental pathways available to war-affected youth. Second, we maintain that the psychological sciences must strive to understand such longstanding developmental inequities even if we do not, at this time, have the tools to fully address them.

The Longitudinal Effects of Chronic Mediated Exposure to Political Violence on Ideological Beliefs About Political Conflicts Among Youths.

This study examines the effects of chronic (i.e., repeated and cumulative) mediated exposure to political violence on ideological beliefs regarding political conflict. It centers on these effects on young viewers, from preadolescents to adolescents. Ideological beliefs refers here to support of war, perception of threat to one's nation, and normative beliefs concerning aggression toward the out-group. A longitudinal study was conducted on a sample of Israeli and Palestinian youths who experience the Israeli-Palestinian conflict firsthand (N = 1,207). Two alternative hypotheses were tested: that chronic exposure via the media increases support for war and aggression and elevates feeling of threat, or that chronic exposure via the media strengthens preexisting beliefs. Results demonstrated that higher levels of exposure were longitudinally related to stronger support for war. Regarding normative beliefs about aggression and threat to one's nation, mediated exposure reinforced initial beliefs, rendering the youths more extreme in their attitudes. These results mostly support the conceptualization of the relation between media violence and behaviors as "reciprocally determined" or "reinforcing spirals." The results are also discussed in light of the differences found between the effect of exposure to political violence firsthand and exposure via the media.