Evaluation of the Witnesses of The 6 February 2023 Kahramanmaraş Earthquake in the Context of the Survivors Syndrome and Loneliness Variables

Abstract

The aim of the study is to investigate the relationship between the survivors syndrome and loneliness experienced by University students who witnessed the earthquake by living in the earthquake zone or other cities for the first time in their lives in the case of the February 6 2023 Kahramanmaras earthquake in the light of demographic variables related to the earthquake experience. When the sample’s answers to the earthquake-related questions were examined, 48.9% of the earthquake victims expressed that they experienced different needs primarily in which ways, civil society organizations, 53.9% disappointment after the Kahramanmaraş earthquake, 62.4% confidence, and 63.8% of the sample experienced fear of earthquakes to the question of what was most needed after the Kahramanmaraş earthquake. Students who do not find their homes safe, who witnessed earthquakes in cities that did not experience earthquakes, who suffered losses in the earthquake and who need security the most, experience the survivor syndrome. However, students whose thoughts about the future changed after the earthquake, who stated that they could not receive accurate information about the earthquake, and who were more pessimistic about the future of the country before the earthquake, experience loneliness syndrome. All results of the study were discussed in the light of the relevant literature and suggestions were made for future studies.