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Mental health status and its correlates among emerging adults living in the west bank experiencing prolonged conflict: a study on depression, anxiety, war-related stress, and resilience
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DOI：10.1186/s12889-026-28798-9.png)
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Abstract
En 中文
Emerging adults living in conflict-affected regions are exposed to chronic stressors that may adversely affect their psychological well-being. In the West Bank, prolonged exposure to war, political violence, military escalation, and radical attacks has created a persistent environment of uncertainty and threat. Despite growing concerns regarding the mental health consequences of chronic conflict exposure, evidence examining the interplay between war-related stress, resilience, depression, and anxiety among Palestinian emerging adults remains limited. This study investigated the associations between war-related stress, resilience, depression, and anxiety among emerging adults residing in the West Bank and identified sociodemographic and psychological predictors of mental health outcomes. A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 549 emerging adults aged between 18 and 29 years residing in the West Bank. Participants completed a sociodemographic questionnaire, the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales-21 (DASS-21), the War-Related Stress Scale (WRSS), and the Brief Resilience Scale (BRS). Descriptive statistics, bivariate analyses, Pearson correlations, and multiple regression analyses were performed to examine associations among study variables and identify predictors of depression and anxiety symptoms. Participants had a mean depression item score of 1.45 (SD = 0.70) and a mean anxiety item score of 1.32 (SD = 0.66) on the DASS-21. Participants also reported a mean war-related stress score of 3.30 (SD = 1.39) and a mean resilience score of 2.99 (SD = 0.39). War-related stress was positively correlated with anxiety levels (r = .30, p < .001) and depressive symptoms (r = .37, p < .001), whereas resilience was negatively correlated with anxiety (r = − .19, p < .001) and depression (r = − .25, p < .001). Multiple linear regression analyses showed that higher war-related stress was independently associated with higher anxiety (β = 0.27, p < .001) and depression (β = 0.32, p < .001), whereas higher resilience was independently associated with lower anxiety levels (β = −0.19, p < .001) and depressive symptoms (β = −0.22, p < .001). Older age was independently associated with higher levels of psychological distress, and residing in a village was independently associated with higher depressive symptoms. Prolonged exposure to war-related stressors is associated with increases in mental health challenges in emerging adults in the West Bank. Resilience is associated with reductions in such symptoms. These findings highlight the urgent need for mental health interventions aimed at enhancing resilience among emerging adults in conflict environments.
Keywords:
West Bank
War-related stress
Resilience
Depression
Anxiety
Political violence
Emerging adults’ mental health
Chronic stress
Conflict exposure
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3.6
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3.2W
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8.5W
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