Psychological Status and Well-Being of a large Sample of Polish Migrants in Ireland

Eleven years post EU enlargement, there are approximately 150,000 Polish nationals living in Ireland. The main aim of the study was to estimate levels of depression, anxiety, and stress through comparisons with normative data drawn from clinical and non-clinical samples. An opportunity sample of 354 Polish migrant participants completed the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale [DASS-21; Lovibond, S. H., & Lovibond, P. E. (1995). Manual for the depression anxiety stress scales. Sydney: Psychology Foundation] accompanied with demographic information. The results indicated that the majority of the participants are employed, well educated, and reported good psychological status. However, it is possible that a minority of the participants are struggling with severe levels of anxiety and depression. The results contribute to the existing literature on Polish migration and suggest that the migrants’ psychological status is relatively positive.