Table 3 Comparison of direct impact, psychological impact, help seeking behaviour and personal views on the war among Polish, Ukrainian and Taiwanese participants (n = 1626).

From: Depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress during the 2022 Russo-Ukrainian war, a comparison between populations in Poland, Ukraine, and Taiwan

Demographic data

Number (%)

p-value

Poland (N = 1053)

Ukraine (n = 385)

Taiwan (n = 188)

I. Direct impact of the 2022 Russia-Ukraine War

 Do you know a person/friend/relative who was killed in the current Ukraine crisis?

  Yes

35 (3.3)

186 (48.3)

1 (0.5)

 < 0.001

  No

1018 (96.7)

199 (51.7)

187 (99.5)

 Do you know a person/friend/relative who was injured in the current war in Ukraine?

  Yes

47 (4.5)

181 (47)

2 (1.1)

 < 0.001

  No

1006 (95.5)

204 (53)

186 (98.6)

 Do you know a person/friend/relative who is being endangered in the current war in Ukraine?

  Yes

343 (32.6)

351 (91.2)

4 (2.1)

 < 0.001

  No

710 (67.4)

34 (8.8)

184 (97.9)

 Is your life endangered in the current war in Ukraine?

  Yes

37 (3.5)

223 (57.9)

2 (1.1)

 < 0.001

  No

1016 (96.5)

162 (42.1)

186 (98.6)

 Were you forced to separate from your family or loved ones during the current war in Ukraine?

  Yes

11 (1)

237 (61.6)

2 (1.1)

 < 0.001

  No

1042 (99)

148 (38.4)

186 (98.6)

 Does the war in Ukraine have a negative impact on your income?

  Yes

299 (28.4)

312 (81)

23 (12.2)

 < 0.001

  No

754 (71.6)

73 (19)

165 (87.8)

 Does the war in Ukraine affected your financial security?

  Yes

722 (68.6)

356 (92.5)

27 (14.4)

 < 0.001

  No

331 (31.4)

29 (7.5)

161 (85.6)

 Are you distressed by the war noises in Ukraine?

  Yes

721 (68.5)

340 (88.3)

89 (47.3)

 < 0.001

  No

332 (31.5)

45 (11.7)

99 (52.7)

II. Psychological impact of the 2022 Russia-Ukraine War

 Are you distressed by the media war scenes from Ukraine?

  Yes

846 (80.3)

321 (83.4)

102 (54.3)

 < 0.001

  No

207 (19.7)

64 (16.6)

86 (45.7)

 Are you distressed when you hear the news or see people who were killed during the Ukraine crisis?

  Yes

870 (82.6)

358 (93)

168 (89.4)

 < 0.001

  No

183 (17.4)

27 (7)

20 (10.6)

 Do you consider the war in Ukraine to be a major cause of your distress lately?

  No

241 (22.9)

15 (3.9)

133 (70.7)

 < 0.001

  Partial

592 (56.2)

91 (23.6)

53 (28.2)

 < 0.001

  Yes, totally

220 (20.9)

279 (72.5)

2 (1.1)

 < 0.001

 Is the media exposure to the current war in Ukraine psychological traumatic?

  Agree

442 (42)

269 (69.9)

46 (24.5)

 < 0.001

  Neutral of no comment

293 (27.8)

76 (19.7)

84 (44.7)

 < 0.001

  Disagree

318 (30.2)

40 (10.4)

58 (30.9)

 < 0.001

 Your sleep quality since the war in Ukraine started is:

  Good

285 (27.1)

41 (10.6)

44 (23.4)

 < 0.001

  Average

625 (59.4)

205 (53.2)

136 (72.3)

 < 0.001

  Poor

143 (13.6)

139 (36.1)

8 (4.3)

 < 0.001

Rumination about the current war in Ukraine

 I feel angry about the current war in Ukraine

  Nearly all the time

361 (34.3)

193 (50.1)

17 (9)

 < 0.001

  Sometimes

542 (51.5)

154 (40)

90 (47.9)

 < 0.001

  Rarely

101 (9.6)

26 (6.8)

62 (33)

 < 0.001

  Not at all

49 (4.7)

12 (3.1)

19 (10.1)

0.001

 I feel injustice about the current war in Ukraine

  Nearly all the time

788 (74.8)

339 (88.1)

40 (21.3)

 < 0.001

  Sometimes

194 (18.4)

29 (7.5)

101 (53.7)

 < 0.001

  Rarely

38 (3.6)

9 (2.3)

35 (18.6)

 < 0.001

  Not at all

33 (3.1)

8 (2.1)

12 (6.4)

0.023

Help seeking behavior during the war in Ukraine

 Have you developed a mental health problem (e.g. depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress) due to the war in Ukraine?

  Yes

216 (20.5)

228 (59.2)

7 (3.7)

 < 0.001

  No

837 (79.5)

157 (40.8)

181 (96.3)

 Would you seek professional help for your mental health problem related to the war in Ukraine?

  Yes

600 (57)

183 (47.5)

8 (4.3)

 < 0.001

  No

453 (43)

202 (52.5)

180 (95.7)

 If you want to seek professional help for your mental problems, which mental healthcare professionals would you consult?

  Psychiatrists

466 (25.5)

70 (13.8)

57 (30.3)

 < 0.001

  Clinical psychologists or counselors

810 (44.2)

197 (38.9)

92 (48.9)

 < 0.001

  General practitioners or family doctors

81 (4.4)

17 (3.4)

10 (5.3)

0.065

  Social workers

12 (0.7)

16 (3.2)

5 (2.7)

0.001

  Nurses

6 (0.3)

4 (0.8)

2 (1)

0.561

  Religious leaders

59 (3.2)

46 (9.1)

5 (2.7)

 < 0.001

  Online psychotherapy

388 (21.2)

143 (28)

11 (5.9)

 < 0.001

  Others

9 (0.5)

14 (2.8)

6 (3.2)

 < 0.001

III. Personal views towards the Russia-Ukraine war

 Do you fear that war may break out in your country/region soon?

  Yes

682 (64.8)

333 (86.5)

116 (61.7)

 < 0.001

  No

371 (35.2)

52 (13.5)

72 (38.3)

 You predict the war in Ukraine crisis will end in:

  A few days

10 (0.9)

3 (0.8)

3 (1.6)

0.637

  One to two weeks

41 (3.9)

16 (4.2)

11 (5.9)

0.466

  1 month

172 (16.3)

95 (24.7)

49 (26.1)

 < 0.001

  6 months

207 (19.7)

80 (20.8)

50 (26.6)

0.097

  1 year

57 (5.4)

22 (5.7)

17 (9)

0.148

  2 years

37 (3.5)

3 (0.8)

3 (1.6)

0.011

  More than 2 years

72 (6.8)

11 (2.9)

10 (5.3)

0.015

  I do not know

457 (43.4)

155 (40.3)

45 (23.9)

 < 0.001

 Do you think that the current war in Ukraine may lead to the outbreak of World War III?

  Likely

382 (36.3)

261 (67.8)

75 (39.9)

 < 0.001

  Neutral or no comment

366 (34.8)

50 (13)

49 (26.1)

 < 0.001

  Unlikely

305 (29)

74 (19.2)

64 (34)

 < 0.001

 Do you think that the current war in Ukraine may lead to the use of nuclear weapons?

  Likely

273 (25.9)

151 (39.2)

81 (43.1)

 < 0.001

  Neutral or no comment

345 (32.8)

105 (27.3)

46 (24.5)

0.022

  Unlikely

435 (41.3)

129 (33.5)

61 (32.4)

0.005

 Average time spent on news related to the war in Ukraine crisis per day

  0 h per day

94 (8.9)

10 (2.6)

57 (30.3)

 < 0.001

  Up to 1 h

556 (52.8)

75 (19.5)

99 (52.7)

 < 0.001

  1–2 h per day

256 (24.3)

126 (32.7)

23 (12.2)

 < 0.001

  3–5 h per day

109 (10.4)

114 (29.6)

8 (4.3)

 < 0.001

  6–8 h per day

26 (2.5)

32 (8.3)

1 (0.5)

 < 0.001

  8–10 h per day

6 (0.6)

7 (1.8)

0 (0)

0.027

  Above 10 h per day

6 (0.6)

21 (5.5)

0 (0)

 < 0.001

 What is your most preferred source of information about the war in Ukraine?

  Social media

622 (25.1)

252 (31.7)

59 (31.4)

 < 0.001

  Internet

857 (34.6)

268 (33.7)

89 (47.3)

 < 0.001

  Television

359 (14.5)

107 (13.5)

34 (18.1)

 < 0.001

  Radio

177 (7.2)

26 (3.3)

2 (1.1)

 < 0.001

  Newspaper

70 (2.8)

6 (0.8)

1 (0.5)

 < 0.001

  Friends

311 (12.6)

103 (13)

2 (1.1)

 < 0.001

  Others

78 (3.2)

33 (4)

1 (0.5)

 < 0.001