# The surveys

The in-person Palestinians’ Psychological Conditions Survey (PPCS) aimed to better understand mental health outcomes in the West Bank and Gaza, as well as links between those outcomes and exposure to violence, socioeconomic conditions, and attachment to the labor market.<sup>5</sup> A detailed adult individual questionnaire embedded in a larger household survey included modules assessing personal exposure to conflict events (Gaza only), food security, signs of aggressive tendencies, life satisfaction, risk for mental health problems, symptoms of depression, exposure to traumatic events, symptoms of PTSD, COVID exposure, and prosocial behavior. The PPCS was fielded in person in the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Gaza between March and May 2022. Out of a planned sample of 7,057 households, 6,140 participated in the survey. The data collection team attempted to interview 6,138 adults for the detailed individual interview, and 5,877 individuals formed the final sample used in analysis. A back-of-the-envelope calculation shows that each completed survey cost approximately $23.40, excluding staff and consultant time.

From March 19 to 22, 2022, concurrent with the first month of data collection for the PPCS, the Poverty team ran a pared down version of the adult individual questionnaire through a link that was advertised on Facebook. This shorter questionnaire covered basic sociodemographic questions, personal exposure to conflict events, food security, signs of aggressive tendencies, risk for mental health problems, symptoms of depression, COVID exposure, prosocial behavior, and questions about Facebook usage and whether any other household members had completed the survey (for weighting purposes). Adverts with the survey link were sent to a random sample of Facebook accounts stratified by governorate and gender to try to achieve a realized sample similar in those characteristics to the overall population. During the four days in which the Facebook adverts were live, 18,896 people clicked on the link. Of those, 2,279 people started the survey, and 1,227 respondents formed the final sample used for analysis. Each questionnaire in this sample cost approximately $1.30, excluding staff and consultant time.

**Table 1: The Facebook survey achieved a smaller sample size but was faster and less**

**expensive than the PPCS**

||**PPCS**|**Facebook survey**|
|---|---|---|
|_Data collectionperiod_|7 Mar-9 May2022|19-22 Mar 2022|
|_Final sample size_|5,877|1,227|
|_Approximate costper survey infinal sample_|$23.40|$1.30|

The Facebook survey was structured similarly to the PPCS to try to maximize comparability. The core content modules included in the Facebook survey largely followed the order used in the PPCS and were generally based on the same English questions and response scales. The different modalities used by the two surveys imply potential differences in interpretation, and slight differences in the wording and tone of the Arabic text could also have influenced interpretation. We do not believe these differences would change our key findings but include further detail on the questionnaires in Appendix A. To the extent possible, the Facebook survey weights were calibrated using similar marginal population totals to those used to calibrate the PPCS weights.

> 5 For further information, see World Bank Group et al (2022).

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