Początek epidemii w oczach uczestników programu Erasmus+

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has proved a development that has increased feelings of uncertainty and threat. Students participating in the Erasmus+ exchange were suddenly faced with the choice of completing the scholarship or resigning from it and returning to Poland. This study shows that the sudden closure of universities and the students’ isolation evoked a feeling of insecurity among the programme’s participants. In particular, students who decided to return to Poland felt more stress than those who stayed abroad. The findings also present the complex issues of decision-making in the face of uncertainty. Students covered by the survey gave the need for a sense of agency and security as justification for their actions. The study’s results suggest that both groups coped with the cognitive dissonance justifying their decisions.