Coping Strategies as Mediators of the Relationship between Chronic Exposure to Missile Attacks and Stress Reactions

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate the role of coping strategies as mediators of the relationships between exposure and stress reactions after exposure to missile attacks. Data were gathered from 145 adolescents during several months in 2008, after seven years of ongoing missile attacks. Adolescents filled out self-reported questionnaires that included demographics, level of exposure to missile attacks, Adolescent Coping Scale, and stress reactions of state anxiety, state anger, and psychological distress. Results show that the different types of exposure as well as the coping strategies contributed 33% to the explained variance of stress reactions. Only emotional coping strategies mediated the relationships between objective and subjective exposure to missile attacks and stress reactions.

Keywords:

• adolescents
• political violence
• anxiety
• anger
• psychological distress