When the World Falls Apart: How People Make Decisions in the Times of War

A sample of 1,247 adults from two Ukrainian cities was analyzed to understand how exposure to the Donbas war in 2017 influenced decision-making related to violent behaviors among civilians. The study seeks to: (a) evaluate perceived rewards and costs as mediators between war exposure and violence; (...

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Bibliographic Details
Authors: Botchkovar, Ekaterina (Author) ; Kafafian, Matthew (Author) ; Timmer, Anastasiia (Author) ; Antonaccio, Olena (Author) ; Hughes, Lorine A. 1974- (Author) ; Johnson, Robert J. (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
Published: 2025
In: Crime & delinquency
Year: 2025, Volume: 71, Issue: 9, Pages: 2993-3031
Online Access: Volltext (kostenfrei)
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Keywords:
Stress
Ukraine
War
Decision-making
Description
Summary:A sample of 1,247 adults from two Ukrainian cities was analyzed to understand how exposure to the Donbas war in 2017 influenced decision-making related to violent behaviors among civilians. The study seeks to: (a) evaluate perceived rewards and costs as mediators between war exposure and violence; (b) test if war exposure increases the effect of perceived rewards and decreases the influence of perceived costs of crime on violence; (c) assess war exposure’s impact on the interaction between perceived rewards/costs of violence and decision-making moderators. As findings show, high war exposure diminishes the relevance of perceived benefits and alters their interrelationships with other factors in violent decisions. Overall, results suggest a shift toward “hot” reasoning during war.
ISSN:1552-387X
DOI:10.1177/00111287241268371