33rd Anniversary of Independence: What is happening to Ukrainian society and the future?

Every year, on the eve of Independence Day, Gradus Research conducts a public survey to find out how citizens assess life in Ukraine and the vector of its development, how they see their future and in what direction they are changing as a society. In 2024, the tradition of conducting the survey continues to track how Ukrainian society is transforming under the influence of a full-scale war and other factors.

Ukrainians continue to be united by a common enemy and a sense of belonging to the Ukrainian nation, but are divided by different political views

Compared to last year, the top three unifying factors in society remain unchanged: a common enemy that poses a great threat, a sense of belonging to the Ukrainian nation, and a common vision of the country's future.

However, different views on the decisions of the country's leadership and different political views are moving to the top of the list of divisive factors, whereas a year ago, the key factor was social status and the level of material security.

Ukrainian society is becoming more tolerant of foreigners

The migration shifts caused by the full-scale invasion, the experience of refugee and living in unfamiliar cultures have left their mark on the attitude of Ukrainians towards migrants from other countries — this positive trend is observed both in the improvement of attitudes towards foreigners who have moved to live in Ukraine and those who have moved to Ukraine to work here.

“Due to the war and migration, we already have a problem with a shortage of personnel, which will only get worse over time. Traditionally, Ukrainian society has been quite closed to migrants from other countries. So in this context, the trend towards greater tolerance among the population means that we will be more open to foreign labor migration as one of the factors in overcoming the human capital crisis,” comments Evgeniya Blyznyuk, sociologist, CEO&Founder of Gradus Research.

The future after the victory: what challenges and opportunities do Ukrainians see?

More than half of the respondents are convinced that the war will be an impetus for strengthening Ukraine's defense capabilities.
Respondents see the renewal/rebuilding of infrastructure and cities as both an opportunity and a challenge.

Ukrainians also expect that after the victory, our country will receive global economic support, there will be an impetus for business development, and the international experience gained can be applied to the development of Ukraine.

At the same time, society is already aware of the challenges that Ukraine will face after the war is over. These include economic recovery, the need to rebuild the destroyed infrastructure, solving the problem of veterans' adaptation, and security issues in the de-occupied territories.

Ukrainians are optimistic about the future despite the difficulties of wartime life

The share of citizens who believe that they will be able to have a better life in the future remains at the pre-war level and currently stands at 61%, almost two-thirds of respondents.

“Similar sentiments are observed in the question of where Ukrainians see the future of their children — more than half of the respondents (55%) choose Ukraine. And this is against the backdrop of a full-scale war and the incredible number of challenges it poses. For comparison, in pre-war 2021, the number was 48%. This proves once again that these challenges strengthen us as a nation. And it is not for nothing that society believes that the war has shown two character traits of Ukrainians — courage and endurance — the most,” says Evgeniya Blyznyuk.

The full survey report is available for download via the form below.

The survey was conducted by Gradus Research using a self-administered questionnaire in the Gradus mobile application. The sample reflects the population structure of cities with more than 50 thousand inhabitants aged 18-60 by gender, age, settlement size, and region, excluding the temporarily occupied territories and territories of active hostilities. Field periods: August 5, 2021 (sample size - 1022 respondents), August 7-8, 2023 (sample size - 1100 respondents), August 7-8, 2024 (sample size - 1100 respondents).