Skip to content
DraconiticResearch
Search Sources API
194,230 studies31 sourcesUpdated 7 min ago
Peer-reviewedCC BY 4.0PLOS Mental Health

Trauma symptoms and their correlates among Zimbabwean adolescents: Baseline results from a cluster randomized controlled trial

  • Colleen M. Fisher1
  • Roswitta Gatsi2
  • Natasha Venables3
  • Regina Banda4
  • Sarah Moore5
  • Anastasia Hartzes6
6 affiliations
  1. 1Present affiliation: Graduate School of Social Work, University of Denver, Denver, Colorado, United States of America
  2. 2Affiliation where work was carried out: Department of Social Work, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama, United States of America
  3. 3Department of Early Childhood and Junior Education, Faculty of Education, University of Zimbabwe, Harare, Zimbabwe
  4. 4Community Development Consultant, Harare, Zimbabwe
  5. 5Faculty of Social and Behavioral Sciences, University of Zimbabwe, Harare, Zimbabwe
  6. 6Department of Social Work, University of North Texas, Denton, Texas, United States of America
Read full textPDFDOICite

Abstract

Adolescent mental health is an urgent global priority, yet services remain severely inaccessible throughout Southern Africa. Zimbabwean youth are particularly vulnerable to mental health challenges from adverse childhood experiences including food insecurity, sexual and emotional violence, climate change-induced disasters, and national economic difficulties but research is extremely limited. To address this gap, this study examined trauma symptoms and resilience among a large school-based sample of urban and rural Zimbabwean adolescents. A cluster randomized controlled trial was conducted to evaluate the impact of Singing to the Lions, a biopsychosocial workshop for trauma-affected youth in Zimbabwe. Adolescents were randomized by school (n = 13) to an immediate intervention arm or waitlist control arm. Baseline data, including adolescents’ demographics, trauma symptoms, and resilience characteristics were analyzed to investigate the prevalence of trauma symptoms and that association with resilience characteristics. The baseline sample (n = 1,342) ranged in age from 12-18 years (x―=14.8); the majority of children were girls (54.6%) and rural (52.4%). Of 18 possible trauma symptoms, youth endorsed an average of 7.6 trauma symptoms (SD = 4.5) with significantly higher rates among girls (t[1325]=3.39, p = .0007). Trauma symptoms were significantly inversely correlated with resilience characteristics including self-esteem (r = -.36, p < .001), hope (r = -.07, p = .01), self-calming (r = -.30, p < .001), and social support (r = -.23, p < .001); however, there was no association between symptoms and self-efficacy. No statistically significant differences in trauma symptom prevalence were found based on children’s age, grade, or community (rural versus urban). The high prevalence of trauma symptoms and expressions of trauma found in this study are consistent with the limited previous adolescent mental health research from Sub-Saharan Africa. Results contribute to the sparse knowledge base on trauma-affected youth and adolescent mental health in Zimbabwe more broadly and highlight the need for evidence-based practices that are culturally grounded and contextually specific for the region.

Related

  1. Structured physical activity, yoga, and music-based interventions for depressive symptoms in adolescents: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials
    Huantao Zeng, Feng Tian, Yan Jiang
    Frontiers in Public HealthPeer-reviewedCC BY 4.0Epidemiology & public healthFrontiersCrossref
  2. Fronto-temporal transcranial direct current stimulation reduces symptoms in treatment-resistant schizophrenia: a randomized sham-controlled trial
    Milad Kadkhoda, Behnam Ghabel Damirchi, Fatemeh Sadat Raeisian +2
    Scientific ReportsPeer-reviewedCC BY-NC-ND 4.0Full textNeurologyCrossref
  3. Efficacy and Safety of Vitex Extract on Menopausal Symptoms and Quality of Life in Postmenopausal Women: A Randomized Placebo-Controlled Trial
    Prasanna A Reddy, Srilakshmi Aluri, Anzar CA +6
    CureusPeer-reviewedCC BYFull textGeneral medicineEurope PMC
  4. Mental Health Literacy and its correlates among Zimbabwean Health Sciences students: a cross-sectional study and exploratory psychometric evaluation
    J. M. Chindondondo, O. Maungwa, C. Chimutsa +12
    medRxivPreprintCC BYFull textPsychiatry & mental healthmedRxiv
  5. A multicenter randomized controlled study to evaluate the efficacy of an artificial intelligence–based electrocardiography for the detection of atrial fibrillation in patients with suspected symptoms (DEEP-AF)
    Ki-Jeung Lee, Chang-Ok Seo, Joo Hee Jeong +29
    Heart rhythm O2Peer-reviewedCC BY-NC-NDFull textCardiovascular medicineEurope PMC

Cite

BibTeXRIS
BibTeX
@article{fisher2026trauma,
  title = {{Trauma symptoms and their correlates among Zimbabwean adolescents: Baseline results from a cluster randomized controlled trial}},
  author = {Colleen M. Fisher and Roswitta Gatsi and Natasha Venables and Regina Banda and Sarah Moore and Anastasia Hartzes},
  journal = {PLOS Mental Health},
  year = {2026},
  month = sep,
  doi = {10.1371/journal.pmen.0000719},
  url = {https://journals.plos.org/mentalhealth/article?id=10.1371/journal.pmen.0000719},
  note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY  - JOUR
TI  - Trauma symptoms and their correlates among Zimbabwean adolescents: Baseline results from a cluster randomized controlled trial
AU  - Colleen M. Fisher
AU  - Roswitta Gatsi
AU  - Natasha Venables
AU  - Regina Banda
AU  - Sarah Moore
AU  - Anastasia Hartzes
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/09/09
JO  - PLOS Mental Health
DO  - 10.1371/journal.pmen.0000719
UR  - https://journals.plos.org/mentalhealth/article?id=10.1371/journal.pmen.0000719
AB  - Adolescent mental health is an urgent global priority, yet services remain severely inaccessible throughout Southern Africa. Zimbabwean youth are particularly vulnerable to mental health challenges from adverse childhood experiences including food insecurity, sexual and emotional violence, climate change-induced disasters, and national economic difficulties but research is extremely limited. To address this gap, this study examined trauma symptoms and resilience among a large school-based sample of urban and rural Zimbabwean adolescents. A cluster randomized controlled trial was conducted to evaluate the impact of Singing to the Lions, a biopsychosocial workshop for trauma-affected youth in Zimbabwe. Adolescents were randomized by school (n = 13) to an immediate intervention arm or waitlist control arm. Baseline data, including adolescents’ demographics, trauma symptoms, and resilience characteristics were analyzed to investigate the prevalence of trauma symptoms and that association with resilience characteristics. The baseline sample (n = 1,342) ranged in age from 12-18 years (x―=14.8); the majority of children were girls (54.6%) and rural (52.4%). Of 18 possible trauma symptoms, youth endorsed an average of 7.6 trauma symptoms (SD = 4.5) with significantly higher rates among girls (t[1325]=3.39, p = .0007). Trauma symptoms were significantly inversely correlated with resilience characteristics including self-esteem (r = -.36, p < .001), hope (r = -.07, p = .01), self-calming (r = -.30, p < .001), and social support (r = -.23, p < .001); however, there was no association between symptoms and self-efficacy. No statistically significant differences in trauma symptom prevalence were found based on children’s age, grade, or community (rural versus urban). The high prevalence of trauma symptoms and expressions of trauma found in this study are consistent with the limited previous adolescent mental health research from Sub-Saharan Africa. Results contribute to the sparse knowledge base on trauma-affected youth and adolescent mental health in Zimbabwe more broadly and highlight the need for evidence-based practices that are culturally grounded and contextually specific for the region.
SN  - 2837-8156
ER  -