Gender disparities in individual resilience of parents and grandparents of reserve soldiers during the swords of iron war

The Swords of Iron war initiated a prolonged security crisis in Israel, placing psychological strain on reservists’ families. Drawing on conservation of resources (COR) theory, this study examined gender variations in individual, national, and community resilience, and environmental assets associated with individual resilience among parents and grandparents. A quantitative cross-sectional design was utilized with a sample of 367 participants (69.5% women, 30.5% men; 77.9% parents, 22.1% grandparents). Over 95% reported combat exposure of their family member. Participants completed self-report questionnaires assessing individual, community and national resilience, perceived stress, mental health, and economic status. Data were analyzed using t-tests, correlations, and multiple linear regression. Men reported higher individual and national resilience, better economic status, enhanced mental health, and lower perceived stress than women. However, regression analysis revealed that predictive mechanisms operated equivalently across genders. Individual resilience was significantly predicted by lower perceived stress, higher community and national resilience, and a stable economic situation, while gender was not a direct predictor. While predictive pathways are universal, women experience heightened vulnerability due to caregiving burdens. Interventions should prioritize bolstering macro-level resilience while providing targeted structural support to vulnerable family caregivers.