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Uncertainty breeds anxiety and depression: The impact of the Russian invasion in Ukraine on a Swedish clinical population receiving internet-based psychotherapy
Stockholm University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Psychology, Clinical psychology.ORCID iD: 0009-0000-5703-1068
Stockholm University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Statistics.ORCID iD: 0009-0005-0449-4065
Stockholm University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Psychology, Clinical psychology.ORCID iD: 0000-0002-2172-8813
Number of Authors: 32024 (English)In: Clinical Psychology in Europe, E-ISSN 2625-3410, Vol. 6, no 1, article id e12083Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]

Background: Recent global crises, such as the COVID-19 pandemic and the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, have contributed to a rise in the global prevalence of anxiety and depressive disorders. This study examines the indirect impact of the Ukraine war on emotional disorders within a Swedish clinical population. Method: The sample comprised participants (n = 1,222) actively engaged in an internet-based psychotherapeutic intervention (cognitive-behavioral, psychodynamic, and waitlist) when the war broke out. The Patient Health Questionnaire-9 scale and the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 scale were used to measure depression and anxiety. Results: Anxiety and depressive symptom severity increased following the war's onset, with an average weekly increase of 0.77-points for anxiety (p = .001, Cohen's d = 0.08) and 0.09-points for depression (p = .70, Cohen's d = 0.01); however, the increase was negligible for depression. Furthermore, higher socioeconomic status (SES) predicted declines in depression and anxiety during the study period, with a 0.69-point average weekly decrease in anxiety (p < .001, Cohen's d = 0.32) and a 1.09-point decrease in depression (p < .001, Cohen's d = 0.48) per one unit increase in SES, suggesting that SES may serve as a protective factor that buffers against psychopathological development during crises. Conclusions: These findings have implications for mitigating the development of psychopathology during crises and interpreting treatment efficacy estimates during such events. Our findings also emphasize the potential of internet-based psychotherapy in addressing emotional disorders during crises. This study presents up-to-date information about the reaction of treatment-seeking individuals to abrupt uncertainty.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
2024. Vol. 6, no 1, article id e12083
Keywords [en]
anxiety, depression, Russian–Ukrainian war, uncertainty-inducing event, clinical trial, internet-based psychotherapy, emotional disorders
National Category
Psychology
Research subject
Psychology
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:su:diva-228285DOI: 10.32872/cpe.12083Scopus ID: 2-s2.0-85189371315OAI: oai:DiVA.org:su-228285DiVA, id: diva2:1850585
Available from: 2024-04-10 Created: 2024-04-10 Last updated: 2025-02-05Bibliographically approved

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Gustafsson, OskarCarlbring, Per

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