High school students’ mental health in the northern West Bank governorates in Palestine: A comparative study

Mental health issues have increasingly attracted scholarly attention due to their complex effects on individuals' emotional, cognitive, and social functioning. In Palestine, prolonged conflict and exposure to instability have placed adolescents at elevated risk of psychological distress. This study aims to identify the mental health levels of high school students in the northern West Bank governorates of Palestine and to examine the impact of variables, including gender and field of study. A cross-sectional descriptive-analytical design was employed. Data was conveniently collected using the Brief Symptom Inventory-18. Out of 900 distributed questionnaires, 805 valid responses were analyzed using descriptive statistics and independent-samples t tests. Findings revealed moderate psychological symptoms among students, particularly in depression, somatic symptoms, and anxiety. Significant differences were found based on gender, with females reporting higher levels of psychological distress. Students on the literary track reported higher psychological symptom scores than those on the scientific track. Mean symptom scores were higher among literary-track students than scientific-track students (somatic: 1.27 vs 1.08; depression: 1.36 vs 1.16; anxiety: 1.26 vs 1.08; total: 1.29 vs 1.11). The study highlights the need to strengthen school-based mental health services in Palestine that align with students' developmental stages and academic pressures, promoting early detection and prevention of psychological disorders.