The Bulletin of National Defence University of Ukraine

  • Received 21.12.2025,
  • Revised 14.05.2026,
  • Accepted 12.06.2026
  • Published 24.06.2026
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Vol. 21, No. 3, 2026
  • conflict-affected populations; post-traumatic stress symptoms; post-traumatic growth; psychological adaptation; gender differences
  • https://doi.org/10.33099/2617-6858-26-21-3-64-74
  • Pages 64-74

The 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine produced large numbers of young civilians who were forced to leave the country; however, the psychological condition of war-displaced Ukrainian students living in host countries remains insufficiently studied. This cross-sectional study examined the severity of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms and the level of post-traumatic growth (PTG) among war-displaced Ukrainian students residing in Slovakia and explored gender differences. Seventy Ukrainian university students (36 women, 34 men; aged 17-30) who left Ukraine due to the war and were living in Košice, Slovakia, completed the Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Checklist (PCL-5) for the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5) and the Post-Traumatic Growth Inventory (PTGI) between January and February 2024. Group differences were tested using non-parametric statistical methods, and internal consistency was assessed using reliability coefficients. More than half of the participants (52.9%) reached the cut-off score indicating probable post-traumatic stress disorder. The prevalence was higher among women (63.9%) than among men (41.2%). Women also showed significantly higher overall post-traumatic stress disorder symptom severity and higher scores on intrusion and avoidance dimensions, whereas no gender differences were found for negative alterations in cognition and mood or arousal and reactivity. The level of post-traumatic growth was moderate to high in the total sample, with no significant gender difference in the overall post-traumatic growth score; a difference was observed only for the “appreciation of life” dimension, which was higher in women. The findings demonstrate the coexistence of psychological distress and positive psychological change among war-displaced students and highlight the need for gender-sensitive psychological screening and support services in higher education institutions. The results should be interpreted while considering the cross-sectional design and the characteristics of the study sample

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