Irrational Beliefs and Their Relationship with Psychological Stress Among Wives of Palestinian Prisoners in the Aftermath of the Events of October 7

Abstract

The study aimed to examine the correlational and predictive relationship between irrational beliefs and psychological stress among a sample of Palestinian prisoners' wives in the governorates of the West Bank in the context of the events following October 7, 2023. The study adopted a descriptive correlational research design. Two research instruments—the Irrational Beliefs Questionnaire and the Psychological Stress Questionnaire, both developed by the researcher—were administered to a purposive sample of 400 prisoners' wives. The findings revealed that the participants exhibited very high levels of both irrational beliefs and psychological stress. The results also indicated statistically significant differences in the levels of irrational beliefs and psychological stress attributable to age, educational level, and duration of imprisonment. Furthermore, a strong positive statistically significant correlation was found between irrational beliefs and psychological stress (r = 0.60), indicating that higher levels of irrational beliefs were associated with higher levels of psychological stress. Multiple regression analysis further demonstrated that irrational beliefs explained 56% of the variance in psychological stress, with negative expectations about the future (β = 0.38) and catastrophizing (β = 0.32) emerging as the strongest predictors of psychological stress. Based on these findings, the study recommends developing counseling intervention programs grounded in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT), as well as establishing comprehensive support systems that address psychological, social, and economic needs. The scientific originality of this study lies in its examination of the relationship between irrational beliefs and psychological stress among Palestinian prisoners' wives within the exceptional circumstances that followed October 7, 2023—a population that has received limited scholarly attention in this specific context. The study is further distinguished by proposing a predictive model that identifies the dimensions of irrational beliefs contributing most significantly to psychological stress, thereby providing evidence-based guidance for the development of counseling programs and psychological interventions.