Stronger after the war? Resilience and posttraumatic growth among Ukrainian young refugees: the mediating role of hope
Abstract
The present study aimed to examine the relation between resilience and posttraumatic growth among young Ukrainian refugees. The sample comprised 102 Ukrainian students who fled the war in their country and found shelter in Romania. They were enrolled in Romanian universities. They filled out self-reported scales measuring resilience, posttraumatic growth, and hope two years after the military conflict between Russia and Ukraine started. Results indicated positive associations between resilience, posttraumatic growth, and hope. The link between resilience and posttraumatic growth was fully mediated by hope. We discuss these findings considering their practical implications for fostering the well-being of vulnerable youth, such as Ukrainian refugees.
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A short form of the Posttraumatic Growth Inventory
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“We used the 10-item Posttraumatic Growth Inventory – Short version (PTGI-SF; Cann et al., 2010) to measure the perceived posttraumatic growth related to the war experience (example item: I changed my priorities about what is important in life).”
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“Posttraumatic growth (PG) is conceptualized as a positive psychological change (i.e. a salutogenic response) experienced as a result of adversity, trauma, or highly challenging and stressful circumstances (Jayawickreme et al., 2021).”
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“Also, it seems that around half of the people experiencing traumatic events might subsequently express moderate-to-high PG (Wu et al., 2019).”
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Pop, V., Williamson, C., Khan, R., Leightley, D., Fear, N. T., & Dyball, D. (2025) · European Journal of Psychotraumatology · doi:10.1080/20008066.2025.2500885 · Cited by 8 · see citing works
“Three studies investigated the association between hope and PTG, and all studies found that hope was positively associated with PTG (Ai et al., 2007; Kroo & Nagy, 2011; Maftei & Butnariu, 2024).”
- Authors
- Maftei, A., & Butnariu, I. M.
- Affiliations
- Alexandru Ioan Cuza University (RO)
- Corresponding author
- Maftei, Alexandra
- ORCID
- Maftei, Alexandra
- Venue
- Vulnerable Children and Youth Studies
- Publisher
- Informa UK Limited
- Published
- 2024-07-02
- Volume
- 19
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 537-550
- ISSN
- 1745-0128 (ISSN-L)
- 1745-0136
- OpenAlex
- W4401420600
- Cited by
- 7
- References
- 8
- Citations by year
- 2026: 3 · 2025: 4
- FWCI
- 2.79
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Vulnerable Children and Youth Studies (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Applied Psychology › Optimism, Hope, and Well-being
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Resilience and Mental Health
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Migration, Health and Trauma
- Keywords
- resilience, posttraumatic growth, hope, Ukrainian refugees, refugee youth, war trauma, mediation, well-being, Russian invasion of Ukraine
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