A digital self-help tool to promote mental well-being for Ukrainians affected by war - Assessing predictors of stress

Abstract

Recent studies show the importance of timing of an intervention in the prevention of mental health disorders followed by exposure to traumatic experiences and lend further support to the concept of the “golden hours”. On the second day of the war escalation in Ukraine, a psychological first aid (PFA) digital intervention was launched aimed at promoting the well-being of the population at risk. Chatbot ‘Friend’ provided psychoeducation and self-help guidance on how to cope with war-related stress. About 50,000 users interacted with the chatbot from March 2022 until the end of May 2022.

The research aimed to identify the predictors of baseline levels of stress after exposure to traumatic experiences during the golden hours and the first 3 months of the war in the Ukrainian population.

The inclusion criteria for this study were informed consent and agreement to further usage of personal data, age between 18 and 80 years; and an indication of a stress level at the beginning of the chatbot conversation. The hypothesis test was conducted through a three-way Analysis of Variance.

Results

The final sample included N = 3740 participants (Mage = 29.00 years, SD age = 9.13 years). Approximately 67% of the sample participants reported having children. Most participants (93.2%) reported being safe, and 70.5% reported being lonely or isolated. Participants with children (p = .019), participants feeling not safe (p < .001), or isolated (p < .001) had significantly higher pre-intervention stress levels.

Parenthood, feelings of insecurity, and loneliness do predict the severity of perceived stress after exposure to traumatic experiences during the golden hours and the first 3 months of the war in the Ukrainian population. Especially those having children, feeling lonely and unsafe, require active follow-up. Digital interventions are promising tools that might be applied during the golden hours after exposure to traumatic experiences.