Collective future thinking over the Russia-Ukraine war: Cross-national perspectives from Poland and Türkiye

Collective future thinking involves individuals’ imagining the future of the group they feel they belong to. In the present study, we examine how individuals from Türkiye and Poland, two countries with different sociocultural and geopolitical contexts, simulate the future of their own country and that of Russia and Ukraine in the context of the Russia-Ukraine War. Participants ( N = 152) reported two future events that they expected to occur in Russia, Ukraine, and their own countries. The Polish sample, which is closer to the war zone, imagined more war-related events, including energy crises and Russian attacks, reflecting their negative attitudes toward Russia. They also anticipated a more positive, emotionally intense future for Ukraine, especially in the distant future, as Poland holds a pro-Ukrainian attitude. These findings suggest that perceptions and relationships between countries influence how people envision the future, shaped by socio-political and cultural factors specific to each country.