Research on the effects of political conflict has focused predominantly on the association between violence exposure and psychological trauma. This paper expands that focus. We broaden the assessment of health beyond the conventional spotlight on trauma-related stress to include culturally derived measures of health, and we assess the association between a broad array of political and economic conditions and health. Household interviews were conducted in 2011 with a representative sample of 508 30-40 year olds in the occupied Palestinian territory (oPt; response rate = 97%). The four dependent variables were limits on functioning due to health, feeling broken or destroyed (both culturally derived measures of health), feelings of depression and trauma-related stress. Twenty-four predictor variables assessed multiple dimensions of political conflict and background characteristics. All four measures of health and suffering were associated with human insecurity and resource adequacy. Exposure to political violence was associated only with trauma-related stress. These findings support the increasing recognition that human insecurity and chronic economic constraints in the oPt broadly threaten health, perhaps more so than direct exposure to violence. Ultimately, a political solution is required, but in the meantime, efforts to reduce insecurity and improve economic conditions may improve health and reduce suffering in the oPt.
The growing literature on youth and political conflict has not included an adequate focus on youth activism. To address this deficit, this study used youth-and parent-reported data (N = 6,718) from the 1994youth-and parent-reported data (N = 6,718) from the -1995 Family Study to test an ecological model of family influence (parents' activism, expectations for their adolescents' activism, support, psychological control), youth characteristics (self-evaluation), and elements of the broader social ecology (socioeconomic status, religiosity, and region of residence) predicting Palestinian 9th graders' political activism during the first intifada (1987 -1993). Parental activism was the strongest predictor of youth activism, both directly and via parental expectations for activism. Classic parenting behaviors were not systematically useful in understanding activism; neither were socioeconomic status or religiosity. The model applied equally well for sons and daughters, with the exception that maternal activism contributed uniquely to daughters' activism beyond the significant effect of fathers' activism.
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