Integrative attitudes of Ukrainian war refugees in two neighboring European countries (Poland and Hungary) in connection with posttraumatic stress symptoms and social support

Abstract

Since February 24th, 2022, millions of Ukrainians have sought refuge in other, mainly European countries. Hungary, after Poland, is the second largest host of Ukrainian refugees. Only a portion of them are asylum seekers (~11.0% in Poland and ~ 1.1% in Hungary). The aim of the study is to compare the integrative acculturation attitudes between the war refugees residing in the two European countries. The comparison takes into account both the suffering of posttraumatic stress symptoms and social support. It is the first comparative study of this kind pertaining to the Ukrainian refugees in European countries. The data were obtained by a survey method using the modified CAPI (Computer Assisted Personal Interview) technique. The data analyzed were collected between November 21st and December 20th, 2022 from 728 adult Ukrainian individuals who crossed the borders of Poland and Hungary after February 24th, 2022. The research results show that refugees in Poland perceive significantly more social support and show stronger integrative attitudes than refugees in Hungary. The two samples do not differ regarding the presence of posttraumatic stress. The integrative attitudes proved not to be linked to gender and age, but linked to the host country. Besides social support and the host country, posttraumatic stress also proved to be a significant predictor of integrative attitudes.

The mental health of Ukrainian refugees: a narrative review

“…Interestingly, integration appears to mitigate PTSD among Ukrainian refugees to some extent [46]. Those who have resettled in neighboring countries, such as Poland and Hungary, of Ukraine have been found to have more positive integrative attitudes, which have been shown to have a positive relationship with PTSD [46].…”

“…There is conflicting evidence within the current literature about rates of PTSD among Ukrainian refugees with some estimates ranging between 45% and 73% [34,45,46] and some as low as 5% [35]. This variance could be due to the range of different outcome measures used in each study.…”

“…Interestingly, integration appears to mitigate PTSD among Ukrainian refugees to some extent [46]. Those who have resettled in neighboring countries, such as Poland and Hungary, of Ukraine have been found to have more positive integrative attitudes, which have been shown to have a positive relationship with PTSD [46]. The positive relationship between PTSD and positive integrative attitudes may be influenced in part due to the similarities in language between Ukrainian and Polish people, enabling Ukrainian refugees to learn the language quickly and therefore helping them in finding jobs and housing [46].…”

“…Those who have resettled in neighboring countries, such as Poland and Hungary, of Ukraine have been found to have more positive integrative attitudes, which have been shown to have a positive relationship with PTSD [46]. The positive relationship between PTSD and positive integrative attitudes may be influenced in part due to the similarities in language between Ukrainian and Polish people, enabling Ukrainian refugees to learn the language quickly and therefore helping them in finding jobs and housing [46]. Indeed, gaining command of the host country's language has been found to be a protective factor among Ukrainian refugees, with female Ukrainian refugees showing more PTSD symptoms if they do not speak their host country's language [45].…”

Psychological and Pedagogical Aspects of Adaptation of Displaced Ukrainian Children to the Educational Environment of Another Country

“…However, the integration of displaced persons from Ukraine for permanent residence in European countries largely depends on language, age, education, labour, and social characteristics. Accordingly, the adaptation process will be more successful if actions are taken to provide social, psychological, and communicative support by the governments of European countries at the early stages of the relocation of Ukrainians (Embassy of Ukraine in the Republic of Poland, 2022; Kovács et al, 2023).…”