Gender and Place of Settlement as Predictors of Perceived Social Support, PTSD, and Insomnia among Internally Displaced Adolescents in North-East Nigeria

Ismaila Yakubu,Jesper Dammeyer,Onyekachi Prince David

doi:10.3390/socsci10110428

Ismaila Yakubu, Jesper Dammeyer + Show 1 more

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https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci10110428

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Abstract

Previous research has shown that gender affects social support and post-traumatic stress disorders (PTSD). The present study explores the main and interaction effects of gender and place of settlement on social support, PTSD symptoms, and insomnia in internally displaced adolescents (IDAs) in North-east of Nigeria. A stratified sampling method was used to select 109 participants from IDAs living in the camp, while 27 additional IDAs were purposively recruited from those living in the host community. Participants completed measures of Harvard Trauma Questionnaire Part-II, Insomnia Severity Index, and Crisis Support. No significant effects of gender on perceived social support, PTSDs, and insomnia were observed. Place of settlement had a significant effect on social support, with IDAs living in the camp having a higher mean score, while place of settlement had no significant effects on PTSD and insomnia. A significant interaction effect of gender and place of settlements on insomnia was found, with males living in the community having a higher mean score than their female counterparts, as well as both males and females in the camp. In conclusion, there is a need to understand male IDAs who reside in non-camp settings better, including the nature of their challenges, the outcomes they desire, and the limitations they experienced.

Highlights

Given that the present study found non-significant interaction effect of gender and place of settlement on social support and posttraumatic stress disorders (PTSD), we suggest that the effect of gender on social support and PTSD does not depend on the place of settlement
The findings of this study extend to related studies by identifying new evidence and focusing on the internally displaced adolescents (IDAs)’ place of settlement
It shows that IDAs in the camp setting perceived more social support compared to those living in the host community

Summary

Introduction

The ongoing insurgency of Boko Haram in the north-eastern region of Nigeria has displaced over 2.1 million people from their homes, and children and adolescents constitute the overwhelming majority (60%) of those internally displaced (International Organization for Migration (IOM 2021)). Evidence shows that children and adolescents are more vulnerable to posttraumatic stress disorders (PTSD; Stupar et al 2021). Yatham et al (2018) reported higher prevalence rates of PTSD, ranging from 0.2–89%, among displaced children and adolescents living in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). In LMICs, internal displacement is usually protracted, and most of the displaced persons often live in poor resource settlements where social vulnerability and lack of adequate infrastructure, along with uncertainty of the future, can act to compound the already raised risk of PTSD

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