Impact of Terrorism and Coping Strategies of Survivors of Bacha Khan University Charsadda Terrorist Attack

Abstract

Terrorism is a serious problem worldwide and particularly in Pakistan, being ranked the 4th mostly affected country due to terrorism. The psychological consequences of terrorism cannot be underestimated. Numerous studies have been conducted on the devastation of terrorism in the western and Middle East countries. Very few studies to date have been conducted on the consequences of terrorism in Pakistan. The current study aimed to assess the prevalence of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among survivors of Bacha Khan University Charsadda (BKUC) terrorist attack. Coping strategies and resilience of the survivors was also examined, in order to identify adaptive coping and maladaptive coping strategies. Data was collected from the survivors on 34th day of terrorist attack. The sample (N=103) included 60 males and 43 females ranging in age from 18 to 34 years. Results of the study revealed that 77% of the participants directly affected had PTSD. Additionally, it was found that more than half of the individuals not present at the time of attack (indirect exposure) also had PTSD. The ratio of males with PTSD was higher as compared to females. The use of Dysfunctional coping strategies was found to be significantly increasing the prevalence of PTSD. There was no significant difference found on the variable of resilience across genders on directly and indirectly affected survivors. The findings suggest that an alarmingly large number of survivors are suffering from the consequences of terrorism in the form of PTSD. The use of coping in this population is maladaptive and needs to be addressed. Limitations and recommendations for future studies are also discussed.