THE GULF-WAR - DISTRESSFUL REACTIONS TO SCUD MISSILES ATTACKS

This study investigated the relationships among coping strategies, tra it anxiety and distressful reactions (State anxiety and fears and symp toms) of Israeli civilians under missile attack during the 1991 Gulf w ar. During the war sixty-six subjects (46 females and 20 males) comple ted a questionnaire that measured their distressful reactions and incl uded fears in various situations (e.g., during the night, in the seale d room) and various symptoms (e.g., sleep disturbances, sensitivity to noise). In addition each subject completed the Coping Inventory for S tressful Situations (CISS, Endler & Parker, 1990a), a multidimensional self-report measure of coping which measures three major coping strat egies: task-oriented, emotion-oriented and avoidance-oriented. Subject s also completed the State and Trait anxiety scales of the Endler Mult idimensional Anxiety Scales (EMAS, Endler, Edwards, & Vitelli, 1991). The state anxiety scales measure two components of the individual's st ate anxiety, cognitive worry and autonomic emotional reactions. The tr ait anxiety scales measure the individual's predisposition to experien ce anxiety in four different situations: social evaluation, physical d anger, ambiguous situations and daily routines. The results showed tha t individuals who used emotion-oriented coping more frequently, experi enced more state anxiety and symptoms and fears, (i.e., experienced gr eater distress) during the war. Task-oriented and avoidance-oriented c oping were not related to the distressful reactions. It was further fo und that subjects high on physical danger trait anxiety and social eva luation trait anxiety experienced greater fears and more symptoms (i.e ., experienced greater distress) during the war. Persons high on socia l evaluation trait anxiety also experienced great cognitive-worry stat e anxiety. The results are discussed within the framework of the multi dimensional model of stress, anxiety and coping (Endler, 1988; Endler & Parker, 1990a, 1990b) and the special characteristics of the Gulf wa r situation.