The impact of Sudan armed conflict and coping strategies on the mental health of the older adult internally displaced persons in Darfur camps
Abstract Background The war victims in Darfur witnessed the killing of relatives, rape of women, and loss of property. Studies in war-affected populations have reported high rates of mental health problems. The present study aimed at investigating the effects of the armed conflict in Sudan on the me...
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2025-02-01
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s40359-024-02214-6 |
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| author | Saif A. Musa Abdalla A. R. M. Hamid |
| author_facet | Saif A. Musa Abdalla A. R. M. Hamid |
| author_sort | Saif A. Musa |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Background The war victims in Darfur witnessed the killing of relatives, rape of women, and loss of property. Studies in war-affected populations have reported high rates of mental health problems. The present study aimed at investigating the effects of the armed conflict in Sudan on the mental health of the older adult IDPs in Darfur as well as the role of coping strategies in dealing with psychological distress. Methods A purposive sampling technique was used to select 109 older adult internally displaced persons (Mage = 74.93; SD = 7.07). The General Health Questionnaire (GHQ 28), the Coping Inventory for Stressful Situations (CISS), and a demographic survey were used to collect data. Results The results revealed a high prevalence (75.2%) of non-psychotic psychiatric disorders amongst the older adult IDP participants. Task-focused coping was negatively related to somatic symptoms (p < 0.01), anxiety (p < 0.05), and general distress (p < 0.01), while avoidance was negatively related to age (p < 0.05) and social dysfunction (p < 0.05). Family size was positively associated with task-focused coping (p < 0.05) and negatively associated with somatic symptoms (p < 0.05). The results further showed significant gender differences in somatic symptoms (p < 0.001), anxiety (p < 0.05), general distress (p < 0.01), task-focused (p < 0.001) and avoidance coping (p < 0.05). Conclusion The findings of this study suggest that attention should be directed towards fostering positive coping capacity and the provision of psychosocial support services for older adult IDPs in Darfur. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-f663e05044bf4bd08b01bf7ce5016c33 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2050-7283 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-02-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | BMC Psychology |
| spelling | doaj-art-f663e05044bf4bd08b01bf7ce5016c332025-02-09T13:00:24ZengBMCBMC Psychology2050-72832025-02-011311810.1186/s40359-024-02214-6The impact of Sudan armed conflict and coping strategies on the mental health of the older adult internally displaced persons in Darfur campsSaif A. Musa0Abdalla A. R. M. Hamid1Department of Psychology, College of Education, Sudan University of Science and TechnologyDepartment of Clinical Psychology, College of Medicine & Health Sciences, United Arab Emirates UniversityAbstract Background The war victims in Darfur witnessed the killing of relatives, rape of women, and loss of property. Studies in war-affected populations have reported high rates of mental health problems. The present study aimed at investigating the effects of the armed conflict in Sudan on the mental health of the older adult IDPs in Darfur as well as the role of coping strategies in dealing with psychological distress. Methods A purposive sampling technique was used to select 109 older adult internally displaced persons (Mage = 74.93; SD = 7.07). The General Health Questionnaire (GHQ 28), the Coping Inventory for Stressful Situations (CISS), and a demographic survey were used to collect data. Results The results revealed a high prevalence (75.2%) of non-psychotic psychiatric disorders amongst the older adult IDP participants. Task-focused coping was negatively related to somatic symptoms (p < 0.01), anxiety (p < 0.05), and general distress (p < 0.01), while avoidance was negatively related to age (p < 0.05) and social dysfunction (p < 0.05). Family size was positively associated with task-focused coping (p < 0.05) and negatively associated with somatic symptoms (p < 0.05). The results further showed significant gender differences in somatic symptoms (p < 0.001), anxiety (p < 0.05), general distress (p < 0.01), task-focused (p < 0.001) and avoidance coping (p < 0.05). Conclusion The findings of this study suggest that attention should be directed towards fostering positive coping capacity and the provision of psychosocial support services for older adult IDPs in Darfur.https://doi.org/10.1186/s40359-024-02214-6Armed connflictDistressCoping strategiesOlder adult IDPsDarfur |
| spellingShingle | Saif A. Musa Abdalla A. R. M. Hamid The impact of Sudan armed conflict and coping strategies on the mental health of the older adult internally displaced persons in Darfur camps BMC Psychology Armed connflict Distress Coping strategies Older adult IDPs Darfur |
| title | The impact of Sudan armed conflict and coping strategies on the mental health of the older adult internally displaced persons in Darfur camps |
| title_full | The impact of Sudan armed conflict and coping strategies on the mental health of the older adult internally displaced persons in Darfur camps |
| title_fullStr | The impact of Sudan armed conflict and coping strategies on the mental health of the older adult internally displaced persons in Darfur camps |
| title_full_unstemmed | The impact of Sudan armed conflict and coping strategies on the mental health of the older adult internally displaced persons in Darfur camps |
| title_short | The impact of Sudan armed conflict and coping strategies on the mental health of the older adult internally displaced persons in Darfur camps |
| title_sort | impact of sudan armed conflict and coping strategies on the mental health of the older adult internally displaced persons in darfur camps |
| topic | Armed connflict Distress Coping strategies Older adult IDPs Darfur |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s40359-024-02214-6 |
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