Inner-city Youth’s mental health: the relations between resource loss, stressful life events, and psychological distress

This study explored the susceptibility of inner-city youth to stressful life events. It employed the Conservation of Resources (COR) theory to elucidate the impact of stressful events on their psychological distress. It tested the applicability of the Conservation of Resources Evaluation (COR-E) scale, previously used only on adults, on an inner-city youth sample comprising 309 Israeli adolescents from high-risk urban schools. Participants completed the Stressful Life Events Screening Questionnaire (SLESQ), an adapted version of the COR-E, and the Short Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI-18). Unique resource categories emerged, grounded in the youths’ immediate environment. Positive correlations were established between resource loss and stressful life events, and heightened resource loss was associated with increased psychological distress. The study underscores the utility of the COR framework in comprehending the intricate relationship between psychosocial resource loss and the psychological well-being of inner-city youth.