War Anxiety and Resource-Holding Potential

Examining why prolonged exposure to war does not lead to a continuous increase in post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among civilian populations, the chapter argues that traumatic stress depends less on the objective intensity of events than on individual sensitivity thresholds shaped by hormonal regulation, cognitive appraisal, and personality traits such as low neuroticism, high openness to experience, or novelty seeking. Drawing on epidemiological data from Ukraine, it shows that, despite repeated shelling, PTSD prevalence remains relatively stable. This resilience is conceptualized through an extended notion of resource-holding potential, encompassing biological regulation, personality dispositions, and social resources.