%0 Journal Article
%T Uncertain optimism and hope. Ukrainian refugees and their attitudes towards the future. Survey results
%A Kopacewicz, Kamil
%A Szewczyk, Michał
%J Migration Studies – Review of Polish Diaspora
%V 2024 (L)
%R 10.4467/25444972SMPP.24.014.20322
%N Issue 2 (192)
%P 33-52
%K refugees, displacement, Ukrainians in Poland, future, survey
%@ 2081-4488
%D 2024
%U https://ejournals.eu/en/journal/smpp/article/niepewny-optymizm-i-nadzieja-stosunek-do-przyszlosci-osob-uchodzczych-z-ukrainy-wyniki-badania-ankietowego
%X The survey is an exploration of the opinions and attitudes of refugee people from Ukraine about their perceived future, in relation to current experiences and past experiences. A total of 832 people residing in Poland participated in the survey, answering 46 closed and one open-ended question. The aim of the research was to identify the perspectives of people from Ukraine, in the context of the ongoing war and the experience of displacement (as of the first half of 2023). The questions touched on feelings of guilt, discrimination, plans to leave Poland, support for one’s own country, assessment of one’s own psychological and economic position, willingness to learn the Polish language, and private opinion on Ukraine’s geopolitical future. The survey included people taking part in, or interested in, personal development courses offered in Warsaw. The results show a wide variety of experiences, opinions and attitudes, but converge to a few dominant types of responses. Despite negative experiences and declared fears, hope is the key word that dominated respondents’ answers when asked about associations with the future. Furthermore, the majority of respondents are also optimistic about Ukraine’s chances of joining the EU and NATO. The study fills a gap in the existing scientific knowledge on the experience of migration, revealing the impact of displacement on the perceived future.