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War trauma, child labor, and family violence: Life adversities and PTSD in a sample of school children in Kabul
Author(s) -
Catani Claudia,
Schauer Elisabeth,
Elbert Thomas,
Missmahl Inge,
Bette JeanPaul,
Neuner Frank
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
journal of traumatic stress
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.259
H-Index - 134
eISSN - 1573-6598
pISSN - 0894-9867
DOI - 10.1002/jts.20415
Subject(s) - stressor , psychology , poison control , injury prevention , vulnerability (computing) , clinical psychology , suicide prevention , human factors and ergonomics , afghan , occupational safety and health , multilevel model , poverty , psychiatry , developmental psychology , medicine , medical emergency , philosophy , computer security , theology , pathology , machine learning , computer science , economics , economic growth
Abstract The extent of cumulative adverse childhood experiences such as war, family violence, child labor, and poverty were assessed in a sample of school children (122 girls, 165 boys) in Kabul, Afghanistan. Strong gender differences were found with respect to both the frequency of such experiences and the association of different types of stressors with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms. Boys reported higher overall amounts of traumatic events, specifically experiences of violence at home. This was reflected in a 26% prevalence of probable PTSD in boys compared to 14% in girls. Child labor emerged as a common phenomenon in the examined sample and was furthermore associated with an increased likelihood of experiencing family violence for girls. The results suggest that the interplay of multilevel stressors in Afghan children contributes to a higher vulnerability for the development of PTSD.