Ukrainian Military Personnel and Swedish Military Veterans: Comparison of Combat Exposure, Moral Injury Symptoms, PTSD, Depression and Anxiety

The aim of the study was to compare a sample of Swedish military veterans with a sample of Ukrainian active-duty military personnel in terms of combat exposure, moral injury symptoms and indices of PTSD, depression and anxiety. Data collection took place in 2024, and questionnaire responses were obtained from 504 Swedish individuals (288 active-duty veterans and 216 veterans who had left the armed forces) and 308 Ukrainian active-duty military personnel using established scales. The Ukrainian respondents reported higher combat exposure and higher mean scores on scales designed to measure the severity of moral injury indication, PTSD indication, depression and anxiety. A profile (cluster) analysis based on all participants summarized the study findings. Profile I (n = 509) was dominated by Swedish participants and showed favorable results on the health scales. Profile II (n = 221) scored in the middle and Profile III (n = 71) was Ukrainian dominated and reported the least favorable scores on the health indices, including 70 of 71 scoring above the cutoff value on the PTSD indication scale. A practical suggestion for military healthcare, is to use moral injury indication scales and mental health scales for screening purposes.