Affective and Behavioral Changes Following Exposure to Traumatic Events: The Moderating Effect of Religiosity on Avoidance Behavior Among Students Studying Under a High Level of Terror Event Exposure

The goals of this study were to examine the development of affective and behavioral changes following exposure to traumatic events among Israeli students studying under a high level of terror event exposure and to assess the effects of religiosity on those changes development. A questionnaire was administered to 770 students in the Ariel University Center in Judea and Samaria. Higher levels of terror exposure were associated with higher levels of avoidance behavior, subjective feelings of insecurity, and emotional distress. Higher religiosity moderated avoidance behavior, even when controlling for the level of objective exposure to terror events exposure, but had no influence on subjective sense of insecurity, or the level of emotional distress. These findings suggest that religiosity moderates behavioral changes development after traumatic event exposure mainly by reducing avoidance behavior.