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  • Disasters and Youth
    Furr, Jami M; Comer, Jonathan S; Edmunds, Julie M; Kendall, Philip C

    Journal of consulting and clinical psychology, 12/2010, Volume: 78, Issue: 6
    Journal Article

    Objective: Meta-analyze the literature on posttraumatic stress (PTS) symptoms in youths post-disaster. Method: Meta-analytic synthesis of the literature ( k = 96 studies; N total = 74,154) summarizing the magnitude of associations between disasters and youth PTS, and key factors associated with variations in the magnitude of these associations. We included peer-reviewed studies published prior to 1/1/2009 that quantitatively examined youth PTS (≤18 years at event) after a distinct and identifiable disaster. Results: Despite variability across studies, disasters had a significant effect on youth PTS (small-to-medium magnitude; r pooled = .19, SE r = .03; d = 0.4). Female gender ( r pooled = .14), higher death toll (disasters of death toll ≤25: r pooled = .09; vs. disasters with ≥1,000 deaths: r pooled = .22), child proximity ( r pooled = .33), personal loss ( r pooled = .16), perceived threat ( r pooled = .34), and distress ( r pooled = .38) at time of event were each associated with increased PTS. Studies conducted within 1 year post-disaster, studies that used established measures, and studies that relied on child-report data identified a significant effect. Conclusion: Youths are vulnerable to appreciable PTS after disaster, with pre-existing child characteristics, aspects of the disaster experience, and study methodology each associated with variations in the effect magnitude. Findings underscore the importance of measurement considerations in post-disaster research. Areas in need of research include the long-term impact of disasters, disaster-related media exposure, prior trauma and psychopathology, social support, ethnicity/race, prejudice, parental psychopathology, and the effects of disasters in developing regions of the world. Policy and clinical implications are discussed.