Report on the Results of an Online Survey Conducted Using an Interactive Structured Questionnaire, the Link to Which Was Sent to Potential Respondents from the Database (the Research Online Panel of the Kherson Community)
Purpose of the study:
To assess the psychological, emotional, and security situation, channels of public information, and the level of community cohesion in Kherson.
Key Findings
When analyzing the physical and psychological-emotional condition of Kherson residents, one seemingly paradoxical trend can be observed. More than half of respondents state that compared to the previous month, their condition has either significantly or substantially deteriorated. This distribution of responses was observed both at the beginning of monitoring measurements in 2023 and during the current study. Logically, by the end of 2025, the vast majority of Kherson residents should have given the lowest assessments of their physical and psychological-emotional condition. However, this did not happen: self-assessment indicators remain stable.
More than half of respondents rated their physical condition as “3” both in November 2023 and in December 2025. At the same time, the share of those who chose ratings “1” and “2” increased by 5%, while the share of those who chose “4” and “5” decreased by 4%. Similar trends are observed in the self-assessment of psychological-emotional condition, although the situation there is somewhat worse. Currently, 43% of respondents rate their condition as average, compared to 54% in 2023. The proportion of respondents who selected ratings “1” and “2” increased by 11%, while among those who selected “4” and “5”, the difference exists but remains within the margin of error.
Thus, although the situation in the city is becoming more difficult each year (and even each month), this does not lead to a collapse in the condition of Kherson residents. There is no qualitative shift. In numerical terms, this reflects the widely held belief that people adapt to everything, even to the most difficult conditions. This is how the normalization of what cannot be called normal appears in data.
Another indicator that may point to normalization is the presence of New Year’s trees. In 2025, more Kherson residents installed a New Year’s tree than in 2024, but still fewer than in 2021. Among them, unsurprisingly, there were more people who had left the community (referred to in the report as “Kherson residents there”) than those currently staying in the city (“Kherson residents here”).
Anxiety is the word that best describes the mood of 60% of respondents over the past month, and the number of such respondents is growing. At the same time, the share of those for whom “expectation of improvements” describes their current mood is decreasing. Currently, this group accounts for 33%, compared to 43% in June 2024 and 52% in December 2023. At the same time, “expectation of improvements” remains the emotion experienced by more than half of Kherson residents when they think about the future. This indicator has not changed compared to June 2024.
The study results suggest that Kherson residents who are currently staying in the community have become somewhat more attentive to safety issues. This may be due to an increase in the number of equipped shelters in the city. While in September 2023 only 10% of respondents reported that the nearest type of shelter available to them was a properly equipped bomb shelter, this figure has now increased to 24%.
Telegram channels remain the primary source of information for Kherson residents (used by 91% of respondents). This indicator is fairly stable, although, according to 51% of respondents, Telegram channels are also the main source of misinformation and fake news. For nearly half of respondents, conversations with acquaintances and close people are an important source of information (42%). The already low share of those who watch television continues to decrease (14%).
The most sought-after information, by a wide margin, concerns shelling and attacks. People also search for information about social services and humanitarian assistance, which they often cannot find.
Opinions on the level of cohesion within the Kherson community are divided. Twenty-five percent of respondents consider the community to be cohesive, while 40% do not. Another 35% chose the option “50/50”.
The study was conducted by the Community Foundation of Kherson “Zakhyst” within the project “The Voice of Kherson Residents for Community Resilience and Recovery”, implemented as part of the “Impulse” Project, which is carried out by the International Renaissance Foundation and the Eastern Europe Foundation with financial support from Norway (Norad) and Sweden (Sida).
The content of this material does not necessarily reflect the views of the International Renaissance Foundation, the Eastern Europe Foundation, the Government of Norway, or the Government of Sweden.
