Women Not as Likely as Men to Shrug Off ISIS Terror Threats: Study

A new study from Israeli researchers shows that when it comes to fearing ISIS and attacks from jihadists, it’s women who express the most anxiety.

Men tend to shrug off the threat more, researchers found.

Why?

Men are more apt to ignore or downplay real threats because of their inability to cope, the Daily Mail reported, citing the study.

The Daily Mail goes on:

“Those from poor backgrounds often carry the same negative thoughts as women towards ISIS’ ongoing holy war, the research suggests.

“The findings, from the Bar Ilan University, Israel, also suggest that being more optimistic may help to combat any fears that ISIS pose on Western society.

“Lead author Dr Yaakov Hoffman said: ‘The findings may have important implications for addressing heightened anxiety in the event of elevated terrorist threats…

“‘Exposure to ISIS media is detrimental to one’s mental health and increases ISIS anxiety beyond one’s level of general anxiety.

“‘Furthermore, the results may suggest that increasing one’s optimism and resilience may mitigate the ISIS threat sensitivity.’

“For the study published in Stress and Health journal, researchers wanted to work out the characteristics of those most likely to be scared of ISIS.

“The 1,007 adults were asked to what extent they agreed with certain statements on a scale of one to five, with the latter being the highest.

“Some included: ‘I am worried about ISIS more than most people’, and ‘the threat of ISIS arouses a strong anxiety in me.’”

Three-fifths of the survey participants said they were not in fear of ISIS for all the questions.

But anxiety over ISIS was much stronger in women, in those who self-identified as financially strapped, and in those who suffered health problems.

And researchers also found the level of fear a survey participant admitted was directly tied to the amount of media he or she watched, post-terror attacks.

Again, from the Daily Mail:

“While fear of the threat the terrorist group poses was strongly linked to the amount of ISIS media consumption someone had.

“In addition to their primary findings, they also found those who showed signs of PTSD were also more affected.

“Writing in the journal, the researchers said ISIS, which spreads across war-torn Iraq and Syria, is a ‘relatively small organisation’.

“But it has managed to alter security measures in many western countries through its ‘efficient’ media campaigns.

“Its horrific terror attacks have killed hundreds and wounded thousands across the UK, France and Germany in recent years.

“These atrocities are often followed up in the media with the warning that future attacks could follow, sparking fear in the hearts of many.

“The researchers pointed to the video ISIS released in the aftermath of the Nice attack last July, which killed 87 including the perpetrator, as an example.

“They said: ‘Even people in countries which were not directly targeted by ISIS may feel anxiety of a future ISIS threat due to its skillful use of social media.’”