Substance and Behavioural Addictions Among Evacuees: Findings From Israeli Swords of Iron War.

Abstract

War-related evacuation is a stressful event that may cause mental health problems, which, in turn, might lead to increases in substance and behavioural addictions. We used data collected online during the Swords of Iron to examine associations between being evacuated during the war, mental health, problematic substance use, and behavioural addictions. Study 1 surveyed young adults (ages 18-26) from various areas of Israel. Measures included self-reported anxiety, depression, problematic consumption of alcohol, cannabis, and prescription drugs, and problematic gambling, gaming, and pornography. Evacuees (n = 111) reported higher levels of anxiety, depression, problematic alcohol consumption, and problem gambling than non-evacuees (n = 973), with increased depression, problematic alcohol consumption and problem gambling among men. In Study 2, we used data from a quasi-representative sample of Jewish Israelis (ages 18-70), that included the same measures, in addition to problematic social media and internet usage. Findings replicated and extended those of Study 1: evacuees (n = 158) had higher rates of problematic use of all the assessed outcomes, compared to those not evacuated (n = 2485), with increased problematic use of alcohol, prescription drug, and gambling among men. In both Studies, the results held when controlling for exposure to war stressors and feelings of danger during the war, indicating that evacuation had a unique effect beyond the primary trauma of war. We discuss the limitations of the current research and consider its implications to addiction theory and gender differences in addictions and offer directions for future research and clinical considerations.