Support groups for parents halved violence against children in wartime Ukraine, trial finds
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Ukrainian parents who joined a support group program called “Hope Groups,” designed for families living through the war, reported that violence against children was cut in half and that they had less than half the depression and anxiety symptoms of parents who had not yet participated in the program, according to a new trial led by the University of Oxford.
These findings come from a randomized controlled trial of 510 parents and caregivers published in The Lancet Regional Health—Europe, led by researchers at Oxford’s Department of Social Policy and Intervention, Ukrainian partner organizations, World Without Orphans and World Relief. It is among the first randomized trials to test whether a group-based mental health, parenting and violence prevention program can work during an active war, rather than after the fighting stops.
More than 1 in 5 children worldwide were living in a conflict zone in 2024, according to analysis by the Peace Research Institute Oslo. Decades of research on adverse childhood experiences demonstrate the lifelong consequences of trauma experienced in childhood, which makes the case for acting as soon as possible during a crisis.
Sydney Tucker, lead author, Department of Social Policy and Intervention, University of Oxford, said, “Often, society may think that there is no way to protect families during an active war, and investment toward mental health or child protection programming may tragically wait until the war ends. However, if we wait, we are missing a crucial window of critical action.
“The evidence shows that investment to scale the Hope Groups intervention can bring significant relief for parents from depression and anxiety symptoms, and prevent violence against children, even amidst the active war.”
After Russia’s 2022 full-scale invasion, Ukrainians wanted resources related to how to care for their children and keep them safe from violence, and they also needed resources to process their own trauma, grief and loss. The Hope Groups were developed as a 12-session program from evidence-based content and adapted with Ukrainian parents, rather than an imported, ready-made program.
Groups of five to seven met wherever possible amidst the war: in shelters, community centers, churches and people’s homes, or over Telegram video calls. Sessions were led by local facilitators recruited and trained through churches and community organizations, a deliberately nonclinical model designed to work in a crisis when systems are overwhelmed.
Olha Ruina, co-author, NGO Nehemiah (Громадська організація “Неємія”), Uzhhorod, Ukraine, said, “In Hope Groups, for the first time in a long time, participants experienced safety, trust, and hope. Amidst a prolonged war, this kind of support for families is exactly what people needed. It is what will strengthen the resilience of Ukrainian society.”
What the trial found
Compared with parents on a waitlist, parents who took part in the Hope Groups program experienced the following changes at the end of the program:
- 52.7% less physical or emotional violence against children
- 57.4% lower levels of depression and anxiety symptoms among parents and caregivers
- 33.1% stronger protective parenting practices
- 65.4% higher hopefulness about the future and coping with grief
- 56% lower levels of behavioral issues among their children
- 68% higher levels of behaviors to prevent violence against women
- No harms or adverse events identified in either group
All figures are differences between the two groups at the end of the program, based on what parents reported. This study is the only known randomized controlled trial of a parenting program in active war that found improvements across all key areas of parental mental health, positive parenting practices, violence against children and child behavioral issues.
The researchers are calling on donors and humanitarian agencies to fund parenting and caregiver mental health support as a standard part of the response to war and displacement, rather than waiting for peace.
More information
Sydney Tucker et al, Effectiveness of the hope groups intervention on mental health, parenting practices, and violence against children among Ukrainian parents and caregivers affected by war and displacement: a cluster randomised controlled trial, The Lancet Regional Health – Europe (2026). DOI: 10.1016/j.lanepe.2026.101783
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Support groups for parents halved violence against children in wartime Ukraine, trial finds (2026, August 26)
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