Fate or Choice? Attitudes Toward Collaboration and Reintegration in Ukraine

Abstract

War-affected populations are often divided along social identities as well as by individuals’ difficult choices of fighting for either side or keeping their head down. Focusing on Ukraine, we study the question of whether Ukrainians now primarily relate to each other based on fated traits like ethnic descent or their choices to resist or collaborate with Russia. We articulate alternative psychological and moral theories about whether a war of national survival should harden ethnic divisions or create pressure to accept individuals based on their choices. Relying on interviews and two conjoint experiments, we find that Ukraine’s citizens prefer neighbors who resist Russia’s aggression in line with the moral theory. However, ethnic descent is a psychological barrier to integration as citizens prefer a passive Ukrainian over a Russian who resisted. Our findings reveal challenges to social cohesion in Ukraine.