Study shows:

Ukraine war puts more strain on the psyche than lockdown

Civilian women in Ukraine

(Bild: AFP)

The war in Ukraine has had a greater impact on mental health than the coronavirus lockdown in 2020, according to an international study by the University of Münster. The nuclear disaster in Fukushima in 2011 was also less drastic.

The data used comes from the "Coping with Corona" project, which surveyed the well-being of people worldwide during the coronavirus pandemic between October 2021 and August 2022. The research team, led by psychologists Julian Scharbert and Mitja Back (University of Münster), focused on people in Europe between February 24, 2022 (outbreak of war) and April 24, 2022.

The key finding: the start of the war in Ukraine led to a slump in well-being - regardless of the age, gender, political orientation or other characteristics of the people surveyed. During the weeks of the outbreak of war, moods were recorded on a daily basis. "Normally, it is not possible to investigate such drastic events in a precise time window with a simultaneous geographical breadth," said Back.

A Ukrainian soldier with a dog

(Bild: AFP )

Daily images have an impact on the psyche
In Europe, people would have had a significantly lower level of well-being compared to the rest of the world at that time. When the war in Ukraine was particularly prominent on social media, respondents' mental state tended to be worse. "In addition to the obvious consequences of the war, such as flight or interrupted supply chains, there is a less obvious dimension: the impact of daily news and images on the psyche," said Scharbert.

No connection between concern and solidarity
Another finding is that no direct correlation was found between being severely affected and solidarity, such as willingness to donate or participate in demonstrations. "Our data indicates that political and social actors should also focus on mental health in times of crisis - especially among people who are already susceptible to stress," said Schabert. Data on people in Ukraine and Russia was not collected.