Mental Health of Adolescents during Times of War

War-related trauma can severely affect adolescent mental health, especially during critical developmental periods. This study investigated factors influencing mental health and wellbeing among 973 Israeli adolescents (ages 13–18, 65.8% female) eight months after the 'Swords of Iron' conflict. Participants completed validated self-report questionnaires assessing mental health, resilience, executive functions (EFs), sense of coherence, and war-related changes in daily-life participation. Results showed that 40.2% of adolescents scored within the abnormal range for mental health symptoms, exceeding the expected normative 10%. Female participants and older participants exhibited worse emotional status. Participation declined across all occupational domains, with notable individual variability. A regression model explained over 50% of the variance in mental health outcomes, with executive dysfunction and lower resilience emerging as the strongest predictors for reduced mental health. Decision tree analysis revealed that adolescents with better EF function of inhibitory control and less decline in participation reported better mental health. Among adolescents with EF difficulties, lower arousal symptoms were associated with improved outcomes. These findings suggest that EFs, patterns of daily-life participation and arousal symptoms contribute to adolescents’ capacity to cope with trauma. Addressing them as potential intervention targets may help mitigate long-term effects of traumatic exposure.