Issue 3/4 Vol. 34 1992

A group of war prisoners from the Slavonia region

VUKSIC-MIHALJEVIC, Z., BARKIC, J., MIHALJEVIC, S., MANDIC, N., FILAKOVIC, P., BOSNIC, D., MIHALJEVIC, L.

In the group of 51 prisoners-of-war captured in the period between December 1991 and March 1992, kept in the District Prison in Osijek, we tried to determine the psychosocial factors by means of a questionnaire and estimate their mental health during psychiatric check ups and using a brief psychiatric rating scale (BPRS). According to the results obtained, the group consisted of Croatian citizens, Serbs of older age, low education and mostly employed. Their motivation for taking part in the war was based on irrational fears aroused by Serbian mass-media indoctrination and by anticipation of losses. The levels of intensity of excitement, tension and anxiety obtained using BPRS can be explained by situational war factors, whereas we recorded no symptoms that would refer to psychopathological entities. The low intensity of observed symptoms is partly due to the relatively short stay of prisoners in prison and, partly to respect for the principles of the Geneva Convention - the prisoners were not exposed to any violence or terror.

Keywords: war prisoners, psychiatry in war, war, soldiers

Short Title: Vuksic-mihaljevic, Z. et al. (1992) PsyBeit 3-4:310

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