Impact of exposure to violent conflict on inhabitants: A systematic review

Pages: 882-886
Aijaz Ahmad Bhat (Department of Psychology, School of Arts and Languages, Lovely Professional University, Punjab)
Abdul Majeed Bhat (Department of Psychology, Higher Education, Govt. of Jammu and Kashmir)
Hariom Sharma (Department of Psychology, School of Arts and Languages, Lovely Professional University, Punjab)
Imran Ahmad (Discipline of Psychology, School of Social Sciences, Indira Gandhi National Open University, New Delhi)

Currently, many places in the world are plagued by the various forms of human violence which deeply, directly and negatively affects all aspects of human development. Violence, arising out of armed conflict is one such form of human violence which is affecting millions of lives throughout the world. The witnesses and victims of violent conflict are showing the signs and symptoms of poor physical, psychological and social health. Further, it is playing havoc with the lives of children, adolescents and adults in terms of their education, adjustment and achievement. The impact of conflict in J&K is such that the exposure to actual armed conflict is limited but the effects are in terms of repression, loss of security, loss of income and service access, disrupted schooling, displacement and other forms that have an immense impact on the lives of children and their families. Empirical studies on children in a conflict situation show the determinant effects on children’s mental health and well-being. A systematic review to examine the impact of exposure to violent conflict on inhabitant’s psychological well-being, physical health, mental health, achievement motivation and academic achievement was conducted. Studies were included if they met the following criteria: investigating the impact on psychological well-being, physical health, mental health, achievement motivation and academic achievement published till September 2017. Research findings reviewed here provide evidence suggesting that exposure to violent conflict impacts cognitive functions, academic progress, physical and mental health of inhabitants.