Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39438965›Full record

ArticleConflict and health2024

Close relationships with caregivers as protective factor for the mental health and functioning of war-affected Congolese youth.

Florian Scharpf, Roos Haer, Tobias Hecker

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Conflict and health, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

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1citing papers in PubMed
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1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

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2 · The registry

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3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

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4 · The record

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors.

Florian ScharpfDepartment of Psychology, Bielefeld University, P. O. Box 100131, 33501, Bielefeld, Germany. florian.scharpf@uni-bielefeld.de.
Roos HaerInstitute of Political Science, Leiden University, Leiden, Netherlands.
Tobias HeckerDepartment of Psychology, Bielefeld University, P. O. Box 100131, 33501, Bielefeld, Germany.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundSupportive social connections are a crucial determinant of the mental health and adjustment of youth in conflict-torn regions. Conflict-affected youth face particular risks to their well-being due to high levels of trauma exposure and perpetration of violent acts as members of armed groups and post-conflict discrimination. However, little is known about the possible protective role of close relationships with caregivers in the aftermath of trauma. This study examined whether a higher perceived quality of relationships with caregivers would attenuate the associations between exposure to traumatic experiences and four indicators of adjustment (posttraumatic stress symptoms [PTSS], emotional problems, behavioural problems, criminal behaviour) in a sample of 268 war-affected youth (61.2% male, Mage = 16.31 years) living in Bukavu, Democratic Republic of Congo. More than half of the present sample (56.7%) were former members of armed groups.

methodsData were collected using quantitative structured interviews and analyzed through regression models using the PROCESS macro.

resultsHigher cumulative trauma exposure was significantly related to higher levels of PTSS and emotional problems, while more frequent perpetration of war-related violence was significantly related to higher levels of PTSS, behavioural problems, and criminal behavior. The perceived quality of relationships with caregivers significantly moderated the associations between youth's cumulative trauma exposure and all four outcomes. At higher perceived quality of relationships with caregivers, the associations between trauma exposure and emotional problems, behavioural problems, and criminal behaviour were no longer significant and the association with PTSS was significantly weakened. Higher perceived quality of relationships with caregivers was also directly significantly related to lower levels of mental health problems and criminal behaviour.

conclusionsThe findings suggest that interventions that focus on strengthening relationships with caregivers are crucial for supporting the mental health and functioning of youth who experienced and perpetrated war-related violence.

Indexed as

Armed conflictCaregiversMental healthProtective factorRelationship qualityTraumaWarYouth

Identifiers

PMID39438965
PMCPMC11515726

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