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Sarah D. Phillips examines the struggles of disabled persons in Ukraine and the other former Soviet states to secure their rights during the tumultuous political, economic, and social reforms of the last two decades. Through participant observation and interviews with disabled Ukrainians across the social spectrum -- rights activists, politicians, students, workers, entrepreneurs, athletes, and others -- Phillips documents the creative strategies used by people on the margins of postsocialist societies to assert claims to mobile citizenship. She draws on this rich ethnographic material to argue that public storytelling is a powerful means to expand notions of relatedness, kinship, and social responsibility, and which help shape a more tolerant and inclusive society.

Focusing on the experiences of people in Russia and Ukraine, Staging Democracy shows how some national leaders' seeming popularity rests on local economic compacts. Jessica Pisano draws on long-term research in rural communities and company towns, analyzing how local political and business leaders, seeking favor from incumbent politicians, used salaries, benefits, and public infrastructure to pressure citizens to participate in command performances. Pisano looks at elections whose outcome was known in advance, protests for hire, and smaller mises en scène to explain why people participate, what differs from spectacle in totalitarian societies, how political theater exists in both authoritarian and democratic systems, and how such performances reshape understandings of the role of politics. Staging Democracy moves beyond Russia and Ukraine to offer a novel economic argument for why some people support Putin and similar politicians. Pisano suggests we can analyze politics in both democracies and authoritarian regimes using the same analytical lens of political theater.

The time after the COVID-19 pandemic posed a threat to engagement in prosocial behaviors within charity organizations. In the current study, we intended to test how three motivational paths: affective empathy-based, life satisfaction-based, and perceived social support-based shaped the change in intentions to give money and time to charity organizations over a yearly period (right after revocation of the most essential anti-COVID-19 laws and at the same time, outbreak of the war in Ukraine in 2022, in May 2022 and after a year, in late April-early May 2023). We also tested how past negative and present hedonistic time perspectives–namely, those most robust in predicting emotional states ‐ shaped the changes in the abovementioned motivational paths and giving intentions. We conducted our longitudinal study on the general population of Poland ( N = 566). We found that there has been a significant drop in the willingness to give time to organizations over the year after loosening the COVID-19 restrictions and the outbreak of war in Ukraine. We found that affective empathy helped sustain the intentions to give time to organizations, whereas past negative time perspective contributed to the decrease in such intentions. Our study suggests threats to organizations and highlights potential ways to encourage supporting them and caring for their volunteers’ well-being.

Background: Even though there is an extensive body of literature on posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in individuals who have experienced armed conflict, there are still many grey areas, especially in relation to civilian participants in hostilities. This article evaluates how socio-demographic factors and the interactions between them have influenced PTSD among civilians involved in the recent war in Ukraine. Methods: This cross-sectional study included a convenience sample of 314 adults, 74 women, and 235 men. The mean age was 34.08 years. We used the Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Checklist–Civilian Version (PCL-C). Results: Our findings show that predictors of posttraumatic stress are loss of a loved one, place of residence, gender, continuation of education, and health insurance. We demonstrated that PTSD produced by the loss of a loved one as a result of war is determined by participation in the education system, whatever the level of education. The literature emphasises the importance of social support, e.g., from the family. We demonstrated that having children is associated with a risk of more severe PTSD, causing serious mental strain among participants of hostilities. We discovered that material security lowers PTSD, but only among people who have no children. Conclusions: PTSD is the result of not only the violence and damage caused by war but also of other stressful circumstances associated with the social and financial conditions of life. Further research needs to focus on identifying modifiable risk factors and protective factors that could be embraced by intervention strategies. Our findings can inform the goals behind therapeutic support for civilian participants of hostilities, and implications for social work. Social work professionals are encouraged to engage in direct questioning and to maintain a supportive and safe environment for participants in hostilities, e.g., in the area of education. Trauma-affected people need to be given opportunities to build up their strengths and increase their psychological resources towards well-being. Social security (health insurance, savings, material security) should be taken into account when working with people affected by PTSD.

When international conflict causes an authoritarian leader’s popularity to soar, extant theories lead us to treat such “rallying” as sincere preference change, the product of surging patriotism or cowed media. This study advances a theory of less-than-fully sincere rallying more appropriate for nondemocratic settings, characterizing it as at least partly reflecting cascading dissembling driven by social desirability concerns. The identification strategy combines a rare nationally representative rally-spanning panel survey with a list experiment and econometric analysis. This establishes that three quarters of those who rallied to Putin after Russia annexed Crimea were engaging in at least some form of dissembling and that this rallying developed as a rapid cascade, with social media joining television in fueling perceptions this was socially desirable.

Purpose Russia’s large-scale invasion of Ukraine has inflicted catastrophic consequences, profoundly impacting Ukrainian sustainability across the environment, society and economic dimensions. Despite these challenges, Ukraine’s civilian population has displayed remarkable resilience, emerging as a persistent stronghold amid the turbulence of conflict. In this study, the author has explored the key role of civil society in strengthening resilience and social justice during wartime. Design/methodology/approach This study uses a qualitative multi-method research design, combining a systematic literature review (SLR) and a single case study to understand and describe the phenomenon. The SLR provided a replicable, scientific and transparent conceptual framework, which the case study empirically validated and enriched. Additionally, the Delphi method gathered relevant insights from academic experts and Ukrainian nationals residing in the EU, enhancing this research. Findings This research revealed complex social dynamics and community resilience, highlighting various resilience-building efforts undertaken by voluntary organizations and emerging Ukrainian movements. The findings highlight civil society’s pivotal role in promoting resilience and addressing adversity to enhance social justice and unity in Ukraine. Specific contributions include countering disinformation, providing psychosocial support and mobilizing community efforts. Furthermore, the paper identified six key steps that epitomize societal resilience and formulated a conceptual model based on these steps. Originality/value This research offers a comprehensive and practical analysis of grassroots organizations’ efforts to sustain social resilience and unity amid war. It builds upon previous studies, extending their scope by providing empirical validation and offering new insights into civil society’s contributions to Ukraine’s defense and social cohesion. The study also explores the obstacles faced by civil society and the implications for Ukraine’s future sustainability and social cohesion.

Introduction Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 has severely impacted the healthcare system, including the provision of HIV care. The ongoing war is a human‐caused mass trauma, a severe ecological and psychosocial disruption that greatly exceeds the coping capacity of the community. The bioecological model of mass trauma builds on Bronfenbrenner's concept of interaction between nested systems to argue that social context determines the impact of life events on the individual and how an individual responds. This paper uses the bioecological model of mass trauma to explore the impact of Russia's aggression against Ukraine and the ongoing war on HIV‐positive people who use drugs in Ukraine, a particularly vulnerable population that may be negatively affected by disruptions to social networks, healthcare infrastructure and economic conditions caused by mass trauma. Methods Data were collected between September and November 2022. A convenience sample of 18 HIV‐positive people who use drugs were recruited from community organizations that work with people living with HIV, drug treatment programmes, and HIV clinics through direct recruitment and participant referral. A total of nine men and nine women were recruited; the age ranged from 33 to 62 years old (mean = 46.44). Participants completed a single interview that explored how the war had affected their daily lives and access to HIV care and other medical services; their relationships with healthcare providers and social workers; and medication access, supply and adherence. Data were analysed using the Framework Method for thematic analysis. Results The war had a profound impact on the social, emotional and financial support networks of participants. Changes in social networks, coupled with limited job opportunities and rising prices, intensified financial difficulties for participants. Relocating to different regions of Ukraine, staying at somebody else's home, and losing connections with social workers impacted medication adherence and created lengthy treatment gaps. Participants also experienced a decreased supply of antiretroviral therapy, concerns about accessing medication for opioid use disorder, and overwhelming fears associated with the war, which overshadowed their HIV‐related health concerns and negatively impacted medication adherence. Conclusions Our analysis reveals the complex impact of war on social networks and healthcare access. Maintaining support networks and competent healthcare providers will be essential amid the ongoing war.

This study explores the lived experiences of Ukrainian refugee mothers who have resettled in Norway under the temporary collective protection scheme. In particular, the research investigates how structural integration mechanisms, psychosocial well-being, and individual aspirations intersect in shaping adaptation processes. A qualitative design was adopted, using semi-structured interviews with ten Ukrainian refugee mothers residing across different Norwegian municipalities. Analysis was conducted within a critical-realist and contextualist stance using reflexive thematic analysis, with attention to both systemic constraints and agentic responses. Three overarching themes were identified. First, captures participants' frustrations with the one-size-fits-all integration model, with particular emphasis on language barriers and the non-recognition of pre-migration professional qualifications. Second, reflects the psychological distress associated with temporary protection status, ongoing uncertainty, and dependency on welfare mechanisms. Third, highlights a future-oriented stance marked by resilience, maternal responsibility, and appreciation for Norwegian safety and values. The findings demonstrate that while Ukrainian refugee mothers in Norway face significant institutional and psychological challenges, they also exhibit high levels of motivation and adaptive resilience. Structural barriers compound feelings of liminality and hinder full participation in Norwegian society.

The ongoing Russian-Ukrainian war has been linked to mental health problems in the Ukrainian general population. To date, however, scarce research has examined the mental health of psychosocial support workers (PSWs) in Ukraine who have a burdensome workload in the context of ongoing conflict. This study aimed to examine the prevalence and correlates of burnout, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and suicidal ideation (SI) in PSWs in Ukraine during the Russian-Ukrainian war. One hundred seventy-eight PSWs in Ukraine completed a survey assessing war exposure, mental health, and psychosocial characteristics. A total 59.6% of PSWs screened positive for burnout, 38.2% for PTSD, and 10.7% for current SI. Lower optimism was associated with greater odds of burnout. Greater distress from witnessing war-related destruction, lower optimism, lower presence of meaning in life, and lower levels of close social relationships were associated with greater odds of burnout. Lower presence of meaning in life was associated with greater odds of SI. Results of this study highlight the mental health challenges faced by PSWs in Ukraine during the ongoing Russian-Ukrainian war. They further suggest that interventions to foster meaning in life and promote social connectedness may \"help the helpers\" during this ongoing conflict.