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Background: The educational performance stress during the pandemic outbreak has added to the many factors of pressure that students are exposed in Palestine. In addition to economic distress, mobility and access restrictions, lack of digital literacy and competence, and constant internet interruptions have added new burdens and significantly impacted university students' mental health. Objectives: This research examines the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the mental health of students in Palestinian universities. Methods: Using qualitative and quantitative methods, we identified the economic and political factors, access to educational portals, academic demands, and the general lack of interest in mental health-which has contributed to rising stress levels during the pandemic. We designed questions that allowed us to classify stress levels caused by these factors into low, medium, or high-risk categories. This study is intended to provide needed evidence on psychological stress caused by online education demands in low-income countries like Palestine. Findings: The study finds that students' mental health was seriously affected during the pandemic, with students showing signs of panic, anxiety, and aggressive behavior toward others. Socioeconomic factors, such as area of residence, financial demands, and access to education, represent the high-risk factors associated with rising stress levels among university students in Palestine. The study also shows that students resort to religion as a coping mechanism that enables them to overcome the detrimental effects of the virus on their health. Conclusion: The study concludes that it is important for professors to know how to recognize early signs of mental health issues, how to manage stress effectively, and where to seek support.

In the contemporary labor landscape, we are all exhausted, overwhelmed, underpaid, and frustrated by the impossibility of reconciling work and private life. This holds true also within the academic world, which has increasingly adopted a corporate model in the past two decades, characterized by competitiveness, productivity, and individualism. Alongside teaching and student supervision, administrative burdens have become more substantial, as have the pressures for innovative research, high-impact publications, and funding requests, highlighting an idealized academic figure rooted in the norm of global hegemonic masculinity: highly productive, career-oriented, mobile, and free from primary caregiving responsibilities. How sustainable is this idealized image? Numerous studies, in Europe and worldwide, are addressing the high rates of psychological impairments among academics, such as anxiety, stress, and depression. These rates result even more prevalent among academics with fixed-term contracts, compounded by intersections of socio-economic status, gender, class, race, among others. It is evidenced that neoliberal paradigms have found fertile ground in academia, where structural issues are internalized as personal failures, leading to feelings of guilt, out-of-placeness, and individualized shame. Yet, little is known about Italian early-career researchers’ mental health and well-being, their critical awareness concerning these dynamics, the extent of their discontent and its internalization, as well as their coping strategies. Through a series of open-ended questions, we explored the experiences of approximately 400 academics (Ph.D. students, post-doc researcher, and fixed-term researchers) to gain insight into their perceptions of daily life within academia, their experiences, and their strategies for resilience and resistance.

How is your work-war balance, asks a colleague a November morning. She asks those of us displaced in the south of Gaza, sheltering in a school, after witnessing the destruction of our homes, universities, and cities. She asks those of us positioned in a part of the world that observes in bewildered silence. Since the Hamas attack in Israel on 7 October, where 1200 people were killed and 240 hostages taken, the Israeli military has launched an assault in the Gaza Strip and established a complete siege on all borders. By April 2024, more than 40,000 Palestinian civilians had been killed, including 13,8000 children, and more than 76,500 injured. The present work – comprising a multi-voice discussion between Italian and Gazan academics – reflects on the difficult question of how to survive in such a catastrophic and bewildering context. How can those who have been confronted for seven months with scenarios of death and the absence of any human rights, in a liminal space between life and death, psychically survive? How do those who are here live, scrolling on Instagram between pictures of blood on a flour sack and pictures of bathing in the Maldives? How do we live with feelings of guilt and shame at the precariousness of the values on which we had built the certainty of our foundations, ‘as members of the most advanced human civilization’? This work reflects on possible paths of survival in the face of this bewildering. Thinking about Gaza also means confronting one’s helplessness, anger, and responsibility, necessary steps in thinking about Einstein's question and wondering how we can approach a future where all can experience justice and peace. We reflect on the healing process that can take place within the encounter with the other, in the group, to counteract loneliness, and to construct sense and thoughts. Holding hands in the landscapes of mourning to restore the resources of tenderness and regain trust. Just as the wake is a community event, we need to experience

Despite the progress made in recent years, achieving gender equality within academia remains a major challenge. Existing literature demonstrates how women’s careers progress more slowly than men’s, resulting in significant under-representation of women in senior academic positions and disparities in salaries and contracts. This phenomenon transcends disciplinary boundaries, impacting fields traditionally associated with a female majority, such as psychology, the human sciences, and education. Moreover, gender segregation persists in academic literature, evident in disparities in scientific productivity and citation indices. Using a framework informed by gender studies and critical psychology, the present study explores how gender inequalities are perceived, counteracted or (in)voluntarily perpetuated within the daily work of research and teaching within a department of the University of Milano-Bicocca. More specifically, employing a systematic analysis of academic curricula, lecturer demographics, and course material, supplemented by self-report questionnaires and focus-group discussions (FGDs), the study examined awareness and perceptions of gender gaps within the Italian academy. Through this mixed-method approach, data were triangulated to delineate a complex and multifaceted picture of the structural gender biases still prevalent in the Italian academic landscape. Our findings contribute to ongoing efforts to address gender inequality in academic environments and systematically mitigate gender discrimination. By shedding light on the specific challenges faced within our institution, we aim to inform targeted interventions and policies aimed at fostering a more equitable and inclusive academic environment.

Background: Studies have shown that COVID-19 negatively impacted mental health by increasing depression and anxiety. Additionally, bullying might deteriorate children's psychological functioning. Nevertheless, social support has been studied as a positive buffer for mental well-being. Objectives: Thus, our study aimed to examine the consequences of the COVID-19 outbreak on children's mental health when they are a victim of bullying and cyberbullying. Moreover, we tested the effect of social support as a mediating variable. A sample of 141 children (63 boys and 78 girls) 9 to 13 years old (M = 10.31, SD = 2.26) who reported having experienced bullying participated in the research. All were Palestinians living in Israel, attending primary schools. Methods: Data was collected using the following measures, the Multidimensional Bullying Victimization Scale (MBVS), the Adolescents Cyber-Victimization Scale (CYBVICS), the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ), a questionnaire measuring the effect of COVID-19 on mental health outcomes, the Revised Child Anxiety and Depression Scale (RCADS), and the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS). Structural equation modelling was applied to test the association between variables and mediating effects. Findings: A positive correlation between Fear of COVID-19 and traditional bullying, cyberbullying, depression, and anxiety were found. Moreover, social support was negatively correlated with traditional forms of bullying and cyberbullying. Also, statistically significant differences between traditional bullying, cyberbullying, depression, and parents' difficulties emerged from parental marital status. Conclusions: findings might help victims of bullying by training teachers and guiding parents to construct intervention plans to empower the social networks of children victims.

The present cross-sectional study sought to explore the role of social support and self-esteem in alleviating the Covid-19 burdens among university students in a context characterized by political instability and conflict, such as the one of the Gaza Strip. Three hundred and fifteen university students in the Gaza Strip, 230 (73%) boys and 85 (27%) girls, compiled self-reported questionnaires (FCS-19, RSES, BSSS, ASS-14). We tested throughout stratified regression analysis the role of social support and self-esteem in influencing the relationship between fear of Covid-19 and academic stress. We expected social support and self-esteem to influence the association between the predictor (fear of Covid) and the outcome variable (academic stress). The findings showed that self-esteem was crucial in regulating the association between fear of COVID and academic stress. Social support did not. The more students perceived fear of the infection, the more they were at risk of displaying stress in their studies, while self-esteem might have regulated the sense of overload because of academic demands. The need to support students living in chronic warfare and political violence conditions, the necessity to promote social networks and potentiate their self-esteem during and beyond the pandemic outbreak emerged as urgent in the Gaza Strip.

We sought to examine the changes over time regarding children’s agency, life satisfaction, hope, psychological problems, trauma symptoms and potentially traumatic events in areas where warfare, military presence and settler-colonial violence are affecting children’s lives. 965 Palestinian children, 494 males and 471 females, were assessed with the Traumatic Check List, Children Impact of events scale-Revised, Strength and difficulties scale, Children Hope Scale, Brief Multilevel Children Life satisfaction scale, and War Child Agency assessment Scale-Palestinian version. MANOVA and t-tests were run to detect differences between groups and in the two waves of data collection. Findings showed variations that suggested Palestinian children were potentially in danger of not having the capacity to take charge of their lives and losing hope. In contrast, life satisfaction, contrary to our expectations, remained stable. While the number of potentially traumatic events decreased, psychological distress and trauma symptoms among the participants increased. Girls were more hopeful than boys, and the most satisfied children were found in the West Bank. The younger children had more significant trauma symptoms, while the older children were exposed to more potentially traumatic events such as those with fewer siblings. Gaza, Jerusalem, and Bedouin areas had the highest risk of potentially traumatizing events, and children in these areas were the most exposed. Our research study revealed a worrisome decrease in agentic resources and an increase in trauma symptoms because of the widespread armed conflict, impeding their healthy development, life satisfaction and hope for the future.

This response critically examines the editorial by Engebretsen and Baker, emphasizing the colonial underpinnings of global health as it pertains to Gaza. We argue that global health is not merely ineffective but complicit in perpetuating settler colonial structures that exacerbate health disparities. The health crisis in Gaza is intricately linked to Israeli occupation, challenging the reductionist frames of "conflict health" and "refugee health" often employed by global health institutions. The presence of NGOs in Gaza exemplifies how international health efforts can depoliticize the crisis, as they often operate within constraints that do not challenge the underlying power dynamics. Our call for localization and self-determination highlights the complexities of achieving these goals in a context where the state is unrecognized. To effect meaningful change, global health must confront and dismantle the colonial structures underpinning health inequities in Gaza, moving beyond superficial humanitarian approaches to advocate for justice and autonomy.

Collective documents encapsulate records stemming from collective narrative practices, weaving together individual stories to address trauma and challenges. These documents manifest as narrative letters, certificates, and story genealogies, aiming to tangibly record emerging collective narratives. Their primary purpose is to facilitate reflection, recognizing skills, resources, and fostering a connection to co-constructed stories. In our work, we present a collective document authored by mental health practitioners in Niamey, Niger. After transcribing and translating in English the audio recorded narrative discussions, key themes emerged from Thematic Content Analysis: challenges with medical professionals' unfamiliarity with psychological sciences, community resistance to psychological professions, daily struggles amid economic and environmental challenges, and the dangers of war and violence. These themes were approached through traditional values such as patience, resilience, and family support. This document serves as an initiative to introduce decolonial dialogues in mental health practices, amplifying marginalized voices and challenging colonial narratives that historically suppressed local voices. It underscores a commitment to dismantling colonial influences within mental health paradigms, respecting local cultural heritages as integral to healing. Acknowledging the resilience and resistance of Nigerien practitioners against colonial power structures, the aim is to promote transformativ

Our exploratory qualitative study sought to examine the traumatic experiences lived, in the pre-migration, migration, and post-migration phases, by refugees and asylum seekers of African displaced people in Niger. Namely, in-depth semi-structured interviews were pursued on 50 participants (mean age 29 years), recruited through purposive convenience sampling via a local NGO in Niger. The analysis of the interviews revealed four main themes: the scenario in which refugees live, permeated by prolonged conflict, economic and political instability and the loss of loved ones; the everyday life marked by sexual violence, torture, family abuse, discrimination, imprisonment and deprivation situations; mental and physical health constantly at risk due to the challenges faced daily; and the search for safety and support, also as an underlying driver of the decision to migrate.The findings underscore the challenges of daily life marked by various forms of trauma such as sexual violence, torture, discrimination, and deprivation. Additionally, the study emphasizes the perpetual risks to both mental and physical health due to these adversities. Moreover, it illuminates how the pursuit of safety and support serves as a fundamental motivator for their migration decisions, shedding light on the complex and compelling factors driving their displacement.

The present study aims at qualitatively exploring the perceptions of experts regarding the construct of agency among Palestinian children living in a context of ongoing colonial violence and structural racism. The aim was to unravel the culture-specific and context-specific dimensions of agency, throughout a critical and decolonial lens, in comparison to the conventional understanding of this concept in Western contexts. We engaged in a series of interviews (n=14) with experts with different backgrounds (university professors, hospital staff, NGOs representatives), all rooted in the field of mental health and all coming from different areas in Palestine, among the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. The analysis of our findings yielded a framework comprising few key themes, collectively shaping a culturally nuanced model of Palestinian children's agency. The Palestinian understanding of child agency emerged as inherently complex, reflecting the multifaceted nature of the concept, uniquely reframed within a context characterized by numerous layers of complexity, spanning cultural, political, social, and economic dimensions. The present study has the potential to make a meaningful contribution by aiding in the development of indicators to assess the agentic behaviors of Palestinian children and by providing a more refined operationalization of this concept that considers the unique challenges they face.

Numerous studies have shed light on the many devastating impact of the Israeli military occupation in Palestine, that strips Palestinians of their fundamental human rights. However, the intricate layers of oppression intrinsic to the Israeli occupation, as all colonial systems, often remain overlooked in Western literature. There is a noticeable scarcity of exploration regarding the intersections of race, class, gender, and sexuality within the colonial framework. In light of this, we conducted a study infused with insights from intersectional feminist studies, decolonial approaches, and liberation psychology. More specifically, this work delved into the strategies employed by Palestinian women to resist and combat the simultaneous colonial and patriarchal forces that shape their lives and we investigated the role of feminist critical consciousness in this endeavor. Drawing from 21 research-discussions with Palestinian and internationally experienced feminist activists and researchers with connections to Palestine, we examined the perception and application of critical consciousness in the Palestinian context, encompassing both critical reflection and critical action. The study underscored the emancipatory potential of critical consciousness and its significant implications for the Palestinian struggle. This research contributes to the growing body of knowledge surrounding the interplay between critical consciousness and resistance and their collective impact on the liberation and well-being of women in settler colonial contexts. The implications of our findings extend to research methodologies, policy formulation, and clinical practices, opening new avenues for understanding and addressing the multifaceted challenges faced by Palestinian women within the occupied Palestinian territories.

This project examines the challenges of intervening in Violence Against Women (VAW) in Palestine, a patriarchal society, which is also under military-colonial occupation. With a focus on the Gaza Strip, the study examines Palestinian women’s perceptions and experiences of VAW as well as their attitudes toward the interventions on VAW implemented in their communities. It critically examines international secular models of interventions on VAW while, at the same time, exploring the possibility of combatting VAW by reappropriating certain religious and traditional norms, on which Palestinian social cohesion and survival rest in the context of settler-colonial occupation. By doing so, it produces new knowledge on VAW at the intersection of military-colonial violence and patriarchy in Islamic societies. This is an applied research project, which is influenced by participatory action research. It uses qualitative methods to address how Gaza Palestinian women respond to VAW and how they experience the mostly secular models of interventions implemented in Gaza. The project will also involve key professional figures in the field of VAW (NGOs, police, psychologists) and community and religious leaders while foregrounding the voices, concerns of Palestinian women. This is a collaborative project with two Gaza-based Palestinian organisations—The Gaza Mental Health Programme and the Save Youth Future Society—with which the researcher has established working relationships. The researcher has extensive experience in the field of women’s rights, and she is planning to use the findings of the research for implementing new community-based pilot projects on VAW after the completion of the PhD.

This exploratory qualitative study explored the potential role of political trauma on genderbased violence, and how the exposure to gender-based violence (GBV) may affect mental health among Palestinian females from the perspective of females, males, and mental health care providers in the Palestinian context. The sample of our study consisted of 38 participants (14 adult females, 13 adult males, and 11 mental health care providers) selected using snowball sampling techniques from the West Bank and East Jerusalem in Palestine. A semistructured interviews were conducted with the Participants, and a thematic content analysis was applied to the transcribed interviews. The thematic content analysis revealed several main themes and sub-themes related to GBV, political trauma and mental health among Palestinian females. .The participants from the three groups reported several psychological, social, and environmental factors related to political trauma resulting from the Israeli occupation that increased females’ risk of experiencing GBV. Our findings shed light on different mental health outcomes among Palestinian females as being exposed to GBV ,risk and protective factors against GBV. Thus, we recommend taking into consideration the psychological, social, and environmental factors that are related to the political trauma that may lead to GBV perpetration when assessing mental health, and developing several interventions targeting GBV victims in contexts of political oppression and war.

This qualitative exploratory research delves into the intricate life narratives of forcibly displaced individuals residing within the Emergency Transit Mechanism in Niger, employing a methodology grounded in life narrative analysis. The primary objective is to gain a comprehensive understanding of the potential stressors and traumatic experiences encountered by these individuals, encompassing both psychological and physiological dimensions, while also examining the dynamics of resilience and elements contributing to their overall well-being. The findings, derived through thematic content analysis, underscore the cumulative nature of traumatic events experienced by migrants throughout their lifetimes and across various stages of the migration continuum. The study, in alignment with extant scholarly literature, identifies thematic categories such as “A scenario of conflict and mourning, “ everyday experience of violence and discrimination,” “health at risk”, and ” Seeking security.” Refugees recount enduring multiple traumas, including familial bereavements and losses resulting from conflicts and militarized violence. Furthermore, the analysis elucidates a profound interplay between traumatic occurrences, subjective well-being, and resilience among the studied population. Despite confronting adverse living circumstances, refugees demonstrate indicators of subjective well-being, hinting at the potential for resilience and recovery. This challenges conventional diagnostic frameworks such as Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and underscores the necessity for a nuanced understanding of trauma's multifaceted impacts. Nevertheless, the study underscores the urgent need for a more robust and contextually attuned mental health support infrastructure, advocating for a deeper exploration of the socio-political determinants underpinning forced migration. By comprehending the root causes of displacement through a socio-political lens, policymakers and practitioners can devise

Background: Living under siege and deteriorated health, social, educational, and economic conditions and isolation with scarce opportunities to fulfil basic needs and aspirations affect the civil population's mental health and perceived quality of life. In this cross-sectional investigation, we explored the consequences of mental distress, fear of COVID-19, and social support for QoL in the Gaza strip. Methods: Nine hundred seventy nine (32.9% males; 67.1% females; mean age was 35.2 years; s.d. = 11.4) adults were recruited in the Gaza strip. We used the Fear for COVID-19 scale (FCS-19), The WHOQOL-BREF Scale, Berlin Social Support Scale (BSSS), Depression Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS). Pearson correlation coefficient was computed to assess relationships between quality of life, fear of COVID19, mental distress, and social support; a hierarchical regression analysis was used to assess the association between QoL as the dependent variable and demographic variables and fear of COVID19, mental health, and social support as the independent variables. Results: QoL was positively associated with perceived emotion, instrumental, and support seeking. Depression, anxiety, stress, and fear of COVID19 were negatively associated with quality of life. Gender was significantly associated with lower QoL. The study highlighted that the level of fear of COVID-19 was negatively influencing individuals' quality of life (QoL). This fear was negatively associated to psychological distress, gender, place of residence, and family type. Lower-educated and poorer participants had lower QoL scores. Conversely, female gender was notably linked to a lower QOL. The hierarchical regression confirmed that COVID-19 was an added burden for the Palestinian population. The fear of COVID-19 term added a 6.2% variance in QoL. In the final analysis, all predictors were statistically significant, with the fear of COVID-19 term recording a higher contribution of 22.5%, followed by depression term with 2

Objective: We investigated the association between environmental concerns, health and mental health among Palestinians and whether optimism, pessimism and meaning in life mediate the association between these variables. Methods: Our study sample consisted of 504 participants who were selected using online tools. Findings: The results revealed that pessimism negatively correlated with optimism, mental health, physical health and meaning in life, while optimism positively correlated with mental health, physical health and meaning in life and negatively correlated with environmental concerns. Moreover, meaning in life correlated negatively with environmental concerns. Structural equation modelling (SEM) analysis showed that optimism, pessimism and meaning in life mediate the correlation between environmental concerns, health and mental health with a good fit for our model. Conclusion: In the case of Palestinian territories, environmental concerns and issues are driven mainly by politics affecting people’s health and mental well-being. Therefore, it is recommended to conduct similar studies to explore protective factors against environmental concerns in the Palestinian context, which will help develop appropriate interventions to enhance mental health in a society characterized by high stressors and prolonged trauma.

Objectives: The current study aimed to test the association between trauma symptoms, desire to migrate and psychological well-being, and whether general belongingness, belongingness to place, and quality of life mediate the association between these variables. Method: The sample of our study consisted of 470 Palestinian adults. Participants’ age ranged from 21 to 52 years old (M= 36.4, SD= 14.24). They were all recruited from online advertisements, e-mail campaigns, and social media. The General Belongingness Scale, The Psychological Place Attachment Scale, The Impact of the Event Scale, World Health Organization Quality of Life Instruments, and The Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale were administered. Results: The findings of our study revealed that trauma symptoms negatively correlated with psychological well-being (r=−.47, p,.01), general belongingness (r=−.50, p,.01), belongingness to place (r=−.16, p,.05), and quality of life (r=−.16, p,.05), and positively associated with desire to migrate (r=.26, p,.01). Moreover, results of structural equation modeling showed that the association between trauma symptoms, psychological well-being, and desire to migrate was mediated by general belongingness, belongingness to place, and quality of life. Conclusions: The findings of our study indicate the importance of supporting health providers and policymakers in enhancing quality of life and strengthening belongingness and attachment to the place among Palestinians to control the effects of ongoing trauma on mental health and mitigate the risks of illegal (or legal) migration from the homeland.

Decades of training in colonialist, racist, and positivist paradigms have ingrained in us a hierarchical perspective on knowledge production, where Anglo-Eurocentric viewpoints claim primacy by leveraging the notions of research objectivity and neutrality to legitimize its inherent ideological agenda. In our study, employing a feminist, critical and decolonial framework, we aim to deconstruct this prevailing perspective within the domain of psychological research, in order to re-build trust and solidarity-based relationships among researcher hailing from the global North and South. As a case study, through a series of conversations within Italian, North American and Palestinian clinicians and researchers, we discuss how psychological research explores and describes gender-based violence in Palestine, and the colonial and racists assumptions that these narratives and researchers reproduces. We engage in a deep reflection on these assumptions, exploring transformative process for fostering collaborative work among Southern and Northern researchers, grounded in trust rather than in reinforced hegemony. We posit that this process of consciousness-raising, enacted and facilitated through cross-border dialogues among researchers, epitomizes a daily form of activism that should be seamlessly integrated into every facet of the research process. Research activism can act as a way to evade power within processes of knowledge creation and to rebuild trust and liberating relationships within researchers from the global South and the global North.

Through her responses to a series of wide-ranging questions, Dr. Samah Jabr, Head of the Mental Health Unit within the Palestinian Ministry of Health, gives essential insights into the ways to understand Palestinian mental health before, during, and after catastrophe and genocide. By invoking the principle of "observing and learning" from Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank, Dr. Jabr challenges western pathologizing and individualizing around mental health, and offers a community-centered and liberatory alternative framework.

Collective documents refer to records created during collective narrative practice. It’s a methodology which enables to link the stories of individuals in responding to trauma and hardships. They can result in narrative letters, certificates of competence, story genealogies, and more. The main purpose of these documents is to create a tangible record of emerging collective narratives, thereby enabling individuals and groups to reflect on them, recognizing skills and resources and keeping a generative connection with the stories they are co-constructing. In this work we present a collective document created by Nigerien mental health practitioners working in Niamey. During the narrative practice, we discussed the socio-professional experiences and challenges they encounter in Niger. Four key themes were discussed: the unfamiliarity of medical doctors with psychological sciences, the families’ and community’s refusal of the psychological professions, the daily struggles against economic and environmental challenges and the danger and threats in the context of war and violence. These themes are discussed according to traditional values and attributes, such as patience, perseverance, endurance, resilience, social cohesion, family support, greatness, mutual assistance, and love for work which are interwoven with traditions and narratives. Our contribution represents an invitation to adopt decolonial conversations in mental health practices. Through acknowledging the stories and challenges shared by Nigerien practitioners, we aim to amplifying marginalized voices and counteract colonial narratives that historically silenced the local ones. This choice reflects our commitment to dismantling lingering colonial influences within mental health paradigms, honouring local systems of meanings and heritages as fundamental for healing. We acknowledge the Nigerien practitioners’ collective resilience and resistance against colonial structures of power permeating their work. We belie

Traumatic experiences in childhood can lead to trauma symptoms and impaired mental health, especially when children are exposed to war and political violence. Despite significant attention to child's exposure to traumas, few instruments to detect potentially traumatic events have been validated psychometrically. Our study aimed to develop, adapt and validate a user-friendly traumatic events checklist in Palestinian children living in three areas affected by low-intensity war and ongoing political and military violence. 965 Palestinian children (494 males and 471 females) living in the Gaza Strip, West Bank and East Jerusalem were administered with a tailor-made Traumatic Events checklist, Children Impact of Events scale, and Strengths and Difficulties Scale. Exploratory and Confirmatory factor analysis was run to detect the factorial structure of the checklist. Furthermore, ANOVA was performed to identify statistically significant demographic differences among participants. A three factors structure emerged with Political violence-related traumatic experiences (PVTE), military violence against individuals (MVI), and military violence against individuals and families (MVF). Gaza children and adolescents resulted in being the most exposed to potentially traumatic events. The instrument can clearly portray potentially traumatic experiences in children exposed to violent events and adverse childhood experiences.

Background: Children affected by war and political violence deploy agentic competencies to cope with trauma symptoms and psychological difficulties. However, it does not always act as a protective factor to help them adjust to potentially traumatic events. Aims: We expected to explore the association between agency, trauma symptoms and psychological difficulties and the mediating role of hope and life satisfaction in a group of child victims of military violence in Palestine. Methods: 965 children aged 8 to 14 were assessed with self-reported measures, War Child Agency Assessment Scale, Children Revised Impact of events scale, Strengths and difficulties scale, Child Hope Scale and Brief Multidimensional Students Life Satisfaction Scale. Structural Equation Modelling was performed having Agency as a predictor, trauma symptoms, psychological difficulties as an outcome variable and life satisfaction and hope as a mediator. Results: We found a direct and positive effect of agency on trauma symptoms, psychological difficulties, and life satisfaction and hope on the two dependent variables. Life satisfaction and hope mediated the association between agency and the outcome variables. Conclusion: Agency can help defend children from trauma and psychological maladaptation when it acts on life satisfaction and hope. At the same time, it might worsen psychological dysfunctions when working directly on trauma symptoms and difficulties. Clinical interventions must help children to foster agentic resources in activating hope and life satisfaction.

Genocide, acute military violence, ethnic cleansing, forced migration, decades of human rights violations and land theft inevitably generate extreme collective traumas. Yet, as celebrated Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish professed, Palestinians “suffer from an incurable malady: hope.” Where is the hope for Palestinian people? How can healing and meaningful justice be found in the shadow of such atrocity? Is there hope in international law, international solidarity, decolonial frameworks? The Palestinian cause is not a cause for Palestinians only, but a cause for every revolutionary, wherever he is, as a cause of the exploited and oppressed masses in our era. - Ghassan Kanafani

In both Gaza and Northwest Syria over the last decade, violent regimes have bombed and destroyed hospitals, primary health centres and murdered health workers. Mental health workers work across many health settings, and in community mobile clinics, risking their lives. Mental health workers answer this destruction with care, support and connection with their communities. In what ways are local community-run health services and health work a form of resistance to violence and oppression? A range of scholars, health practitioners and activists will discuss the ways that mental health workers living through bombardments in Syria and Palestine keep going together in the face of violence.

My work explores agency and activism as potential protective factors for children amidst structural violence and conflict, particularly in their efforts to challenge oppressive power structures. Drawing on over a decade of research employing mixed methodologies, the colloquium offers insights into how these constructs manifest in the context of ongoing traumatic experiences in Palestine. Additionally, it delves into the dual nature of agency as both a protective and risk factor for children in such environments.

Wounds caused by forced displacement, violence, impoverishment, neglect and genocide are often passed down across generations. The resulting physical and psychological traumas are extended in continuous chains of debilitating personal and collective suffering that bind individuals and communities to somatic and psychic records of unresolved wounds. This panel will examine the historical and ongoing effects of settler abuses that have been inflicted on Palestinian communities, and the importance of addressing and healing generational traumas as these communities center freedom, sovereignty, and self-determination.

This study aimed to synthesize the literature on Metaverse to highlight its current research, opportunities, and applications in e-healthcare and education to reduce inequalities and for delivering fair and equal opportunities and solutions. The authors employed preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses (PRISMA) to rapidly map the field of a metaverse in health and education. Two major application domains emerged in the literature from the 88 research publications, which include (1) Metaverse in healthcare and (2) Metaverse in education. This study will act as a road map to help academics who desire to continue their research work in the Metaverse for various healthcare and educational services. However, its implementation is required in the future to improve mental healthcare and the effectiveness of mental health services, particularly in low and medium-income (LMIC) and conflict-affected areas.

Systemic Family therapy has demonstrated its empirical bases in many research cross and transcultural—however, Western models do not always fit with family structures and dynamics in the collectivistic middle eastern context. Years of teaching work and supervision in Arabic, Islamic and war-affected zones allowed me to develop suitable training to answer Arabic families' needs. The module introduces efficient and practical skills

Background: Research has widely documented how, even in conditions of extreme poverty, deprivation, or oppression, children are competent and situated actors, capable of actively mobilizing internal, external, or social resources to protect themselves from their environments and safeguard their everyday lives. Yet, the ways in which their agency might support their well-being or instead increase their own vulnerability has remained underexplored. Aims: The present study aims to provide an assessment of all those contributions which, over the past 20 years, have focused on both the positive and negative consequences of children’s actionability, revealing children’s self-destructive acts alongside their self-empowering and protective ones. In the process, it highlights several major theoretical breakthroughs and findings in this area of research. Method: We provide an assessment of peer-reviewed studies that have focused on both positive and negative consequences of children’s actionability, through a qualitative narrative literature review. Results: Of the 168 studies identified from online searches of the literature and the three additional sources gathered through bibliography mining, 76 qualified for full review, with 12 studies included in the final synthesis. Overall, the literature explored the different conditions in which children’s agentic practices expose them to trauma symptoms and to dangerous or self-harmful situations, thereby failing to safeguard their health and overall well-being. Conclusion: The review highlights the need to focus on the dangerous effect of the agentic practices activated by children in terms of their physical and psychological health.

Introduction: Research has widely evidenced the effects of war and political violence on the functioning of children, with a great accord in diagnosing children's psychological burdens related to their exposure to violence. Yet, within this literature, the influence of the chronic sense of insecurity on their psychological functioning during and after hostilities remains unexplored. Methods: The present study aimed at exploring interrelated relationships between the perceived insecurity and the children's psychological well-being and their adjustment to trauma. Based on drawings and walk-along interviews with 75 Palestinian children, residents of both the West Bank and Gaza Strip, we offer an analysis of human security-related risks and protective factors that contribute to either promoting or undermining the child's psychological functioning in a context characterized by chronic instability and political violence. Results: A complex network of sources of security and insecurity emerged from the narratives depicting an ecological portrait encompassing the determinants of children's mental health and psychological functioning. The TCA led to the identification of 8 main themes: school and associativism; social relations and house as a source of security/insecurity; military occupation as a source of insecurity; national and political identity as a source of safety; mosque and spirituality as a source of safety/unsafety; environment as a source of security/insecurity; mental health. Discussion: An approach encompassing human security as an explicative model can help in exhaustively portraying the complexity of the Palestinian children's suffering and their competence in adjusting to their traumatic reality. The study draws attention to social, political, environmental, and economic determinants of children psychological well-being.

Our present study sought to qualitative explore the perceptions of experts on the meaning of children agency in a context characterized by ongoing colonial violence and structural racism. Namely, we explored the culture and context-specific features of agency, experts' perceptions about a decolonized definition, and gaps with the mainstream definition of the construct in Western contexts. The study involved 14 participants (N=8 women), aged between 32 and 70 years with a mean age of 45 years (SD=9.72) who came from the Gaza Strip, the West Bank (Ramallah, Bethlehem, Hebron and Jenin) and territories currently part of the State of Israel (Jerusalem and Jaffa). They are all mental health professionals in universities, research centres, hospitals and social welfare services. Secondly, the analysis resulted in a map of five themes representing a culturally oriented Palestinian children's agency model. A threatening context, alleviating factors, healthy agency, aggravating factors, harmful agency. The Palestinian conceptualization of child agency lies in the multifaceted nature of the construct itself re-declined in a context characterized by multiple levels of complexity cultural, political, social, economic. Our findings might contribute to creating indicators of Palestinian children’s agentic behaviours and a better operationalization of the construct itself.

Through a mixed-method design, the study investigated gender and context differences within the domains of agency, life satisfaction, affectivity, and symptoms of trauma. Two-hundred-fifty Palestinian children from cities, villages, and refugee camps (M = 11.58, SD = 1.49) completed four self-reported measures, Multilevel Student’s Life Satisfaction Scale, Children’s Hope Scale, Children’s Impact of Event Scale, and Positive and Negative Affect Scales. Based on drawings and walk-along interviews with 75 children (M = 10.27, SD = 1.38), thematic analysis was performed to detect gender and context-specific differences regarding all the variables, which assisted in the interpretation of quantitative findings. Findings showed higher girls’ satisfaction in the dimension of school (MD = 1.497, p< .05) and higher values of negative affect (MD = 1.192, p< .05). Correlation analysis revealed that older girls displayed lower levels of life satisfaction, positive emotions, arousal symptoms, and agency (p< .05). Children living in the West Bank reported higher levels of agency (MD = 1.898, p< .05) in comparison to those in Gaza. The comparison of urban, rural, and refugee camp participants yielded significant differences concerning children’s satisfaction with their lives (MSLSS: F (2, 245) = 10.69, p < .001) and positive emotions (F (2, 245) = 6.49, p = .002). Six themes emerged from the TA: girls’ feelings of insecurity and uncertainty; gender gaps in mobility and accessibility to public spaces; education as a means for equal rights; perceived gender inequality; environmental unpredictability in the context of Gaza; unstable social and environmental conditions in the refugee camps. We explored participants’ strategies of resistance to endure adverse living conditions.

We tested the association between gender-based violence (GBV), subjective quality of life, and mental distress manifested by anxiety, depression, and stress among Palestinian women exposed to political and military violence. Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale-21, Berlin Social Support Scales, WHO-5 subjective Quality of Life Scale, Women's Agency Scale 61, and Violence Against Women Questionnaire were administered to 332 purposely selected participants. Structural equation modeling was applied to address the study hypothesis. A conceptual model depicting GBV as a predictor, mental distress as an outcome variable, and agency and social support as mediators was confirmed.

Lectio magistralis tenuta a "Al-Himaya: liberi dalla violenza. Programma multiazione per il potenziamento e la qualificazione della risposta alla violenza sui minorenni stranieri a Catania, Messina, Palermo, Ragusa, Trapani", Università di Messina, 2022

‘No place like home’ è l’adagio con cui lo psicologo Renos Papadopulos descriveva la condizione esistenziale e, poi, psicologica del rifugiato e richiedente asilo evidenziando la dimensione spaziale della sofferenza traumatica di queste persone. Nessun luogo è come casa può essere una formula riproducibile per la condizione del giornalista in richiesta di protezione umanitaria. Un sentimento di insicurezza diffusa, di spaesamento e dislocazione psico-emotiva rendono la vita del giornalista in fuga carica di stress e ansia traumatica; segni ai quali possono aggiungersi delle chine di matrice depressiva e persecutoria. Le condizioni psicologiche alle quali queste figure sono sottoposte, contribuiscono a costruire identità fragili, spesso apparentemente prive di competenza e sicurezza che ridisegnano aspetti profondi cogenti per quanto riguarda la salute mentale. Perdita di senso di coerenza (capacità di comprensione, gestione e attribuzione di senso agli eventi che caratterizzano le loro storie), perdita di uno spazio sicuro in cui ritrovare equilibrio sono fattori ingravescenti della salute fisica e mentale dei giornalisti in fuga. Un approccio salutogenico (come suggerito da Antonovsky ) alla questione della protezione psicologica del giornalista in fuga, ci costringe a pensare e potenziare la ricostruzione di spazi psico-emotivi sicuri in cui senso di coerenza e di sicurezza possano fungere da fattori di protezione da derive posttraumatiche. Un modello che veda una attenta ricostruzione delle dimensioni di qualità della vita (WHO) (economica, sociale-relazionale, ambientale e quindi anche psicologica) può contribuire a controllare esperienze potenzialmente traumatiche e, quindi, migliorare la salute mentale del giornalista richiedente protezione. All’opposto, modelli dominanti di matrice psico-biologica, vedono un’ipervalorizzazione della dimensione traumatica (e quindi clinica) che impattando sulla salute mentale del paziente ne ridurrebbe la qualità della

This study sought to qualitatively explore dimensions of human insecurity and their effect on the quality of life as an antecedent of general well-being and mental health among a group of young internally displaced people (IDPs) living in refugee camps in the region of Diffa, Niger. Thirty-six IDPs (56% female, 44% male; MAge = 15; SD = 1.96) took part in 9 focus group discussions in which they were asked to describe two types of people, one with poor and one with good general well-being after displacement. Additionally, participants were asked to comment on their personal experiences. Five main themes emerged from the thematic content analysis (TCA): Experience of human insecurity during the internal displacement, sources of functioning and protective factors, coping strategies, adverse health and mental health outcomes, and positive mental health outcomes depicted the participants’ perceptions and concerns. Mental health and quality of life proved to be interlocked constructs, where the psychological dimension is affected and contextualized by human insecurity, general well-being, and human rights–related factors.

The original version of this article unfortunately contained a mistake. The given names and family names of the authors were interchanged. The correct author names are Guido Veronese, Alessandro Pepe, and Francesca Giordano. The original article has been corrected.

Background: Gaza has long been enduring a quasi-total siege that significantly undermines quality of life in the region. Gazan youth are particularly affected by the ongoing economic recession, a disrupted environment, and health and food insecurity. These critical circumstances are worsened by the ongoing conflict between Palestine and Israel, which is a cause of death and destruction. Aims: This cross-sectional study investigated the effects of living under protracted siege conditions on mental distress, resilience, and social support among a sample of Palestinian university students living on the Gaza Strip. Methods: Five hundred fifty Palestinian university students were recruited at four universities in Gaza. They completed a battery of instruments, including the Gaza Siege Checklist, Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS), Resilience Scale (RS), and Berlin Social Support Scales (BSSS). We used structural equation modelling (SEM) to test a conceptual model of social support and resilience as protective factors against the impact on mental distress of living under siege. Results: Our findings indicate that living under siege has direct adverse effects, leading to increased mental distress in the form of anxiety, depression, and acute stress. Enduring siege conditions compromises resilience and sources of social support, thereby increasing subjects' risk of developing psychological distress.

Purpose: One of the most affected groups during the COVID-19 pandemic was health-care providers due to the direct and continuous exposure to the virus and a lack of sufficient medical equipment. Palestinian health-care providers were exposed to several challenges related to their work environment as they worked in war-like conditions; therefore, this study aims to explore health-care providers’ perceptions, perspectives, challenges and human rights-related concerns during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Palestine. Design/methodology/approach: The sample comprised 30 health-care providers 26–35 years, who were purposively selected from among health-care providers in two Palestinian cities, Nablus and Tulkarm, located in the north of the West Bank. Thematic content analysis was applied to transcripts of interviews with the practitioners to identify key themes. Findings: The thematic content analysis showed that the pandemic and quarantine negatively affect the mental health outcomes, daily routine and social relations of health-care providers. The main challenges related to human rights violations and faced by the health-care providers include a lack of sufficient infrastructure, lack of medical equipment’s and protective gear, military occupation and a shortage of health-care providers in general, especially those who practice in speciality fields such as neurology, oncology, pediatric surgery and clinical psychology. Practical implications: Further investigations are recommended to test different variables related to health-care providers’ work during the COVID-19 pandemic. This paper also recommends conducting studies targeting Palestinian health-care providers’ training and supervision services to improve their skills and resiliency in dealing with future crises. Originality/value: The present work is the first to examine health-care providers’ perceptions, perspectives, challenges and human rights concerns during the COVID-19 pandemic in Palestine. This novel sample res

he aim of the present study was to test the measurement model and measurement invariance of the Impact of Event Scale (Arabic version) in a large sample of Palestinian children. We estimated (Study 1; n = 610) the measurement model using confirmatory factor analysis. In Study 2 (n = 864), we conducted multigroup (girls and boys) tests of measurement invariance. We pooled the data collected from the participants in the first two studies (Study 3, N = 1474) to assess overall score reliability, as well as the IES’ convergent and divergent validity vis-à-vis other measures of child wellbeing and mental health. The outcomes of the statistical analyses supported an invariant 13-item measurement model (intrusion, avoidance, and hyperarousal) for CRIES-13A. Intrusion and hyper-arousal together made up a first-order domain of symptoms (re-experiencing). The combined findings of these studies suggest that the CRIES-13A displays robust psychometric properties and may be used in contexts of military violence.

Aim: Covid-19 pandemic and its relative containment measures have affected populations' quality of life and psychological well-being worldwide. The fear related to the pandemic and the imposed containment measures has acted as a trigger causing a global increase in negative mental health states. Thus, we aimed to explore the relationship between fear of covid-19 and mental health via QoL (the first and the second lockdown in Italy, 2020). Subject and methods: Through a quantitative cross-lagged path model research design, the study investigates people’s fear of Covid-19, quality of life, and negative mental states in a population of 444 Italian adults (Mean=40.7; Standard Deviation=16.9; 80% women), in the period between the first and the second waves of the pandemic. Results: Results show that participants’ Covid-19 fear decreased between waves, contributing to a decrease in negative mental states (stress, anxiety and depression), thus improving the perceived quality of life. Furthermore, quality of life emerged as able to buffer the impact of fear of Covid on people’s psychological distress in short and medium terms, confirming its central role in regulating mental distress. Conclusion: The study suggests important guidelines for developing interventions to support the populations’ well-being and mental health.