Do personality traits explain the adjustment? A study of civilian victims of war in Ukraine.

Introduction

Forced migration exposes civilians to multiple potentially traumatic events. Personality traits may shape individual differences in adjustment, yet their role in refugee populations remains underexplored.

Methods

We conducted a cross-sectional study of 160 Ukrainian civilian refugees (75% female; Mage = 33.0, SD = 13.9) who completed standardized measures of personality, attachment, posttraumatic stress symptoms, and posttraumatic growth (PTG).

Results

Emotional Stability showed a large negative association with PTSD symptoms. In regression models, personality traits explained 26% of the variance in PTSD symptoms, increasing to 30% when attachment styles were included. By contrast, traits explained only 6% of variance in posttraumatic growth, rising to 9% after accounting for parental-closeness variables.

Conclusions

Emotional Stability is a robust correlate of PTSD severity in this refugee sample, while personality and attachment play a limited role in posttraumatic growth. These findings suggest that trait-informed screening may help identify individuals at risk for severe posttraumatic distress.