Recently humanity has experienced devastating effects of COVID-19 crisis in every segment of social life. The UN Secretary-General António Guterres' statement that COVID-19 pandemic is causing untold human suffering and economic devastation worldwide is, unfortunately, a correct predictor of extent and severity of its effects. While state officials are predominately focused on fighting the pandemic in the medical battlefield, there has been a strong indication that the state reduction of previously attained level of social security rights and services combined with mandatory lockdown measures have severe, unwanted consequences for the most vulnerable members of society. Due to coronavirus mandatory cohabitation, victims of family violence are exposed to higher risk of abuse and deprived from physical space to report the abuser. The risk of child victimisation in respect of mistreatment, abuse, neglect and exploitation is higher than ever, and there is a great probability that criminal offences against the youngest members of society will increase amidst extraordinary circumstances and restrictive measures. Numerous studies have already confirmed that prolonged exposure to criminal acts is a serious risk factor for victims’ mental health and well-being, however, the state restrictions within the psychiatric mental health system can be an obstacle to meet victims’ needs and to adequately provide mental health services for people with mental difficulties. These who were vulnerable are now more vulnerable than ever and question remains whether the state may bear the COVID-19 social burden and adequately protect them. It is of utter importance to emphasize that scientific community has a moral, ethical and professional obligation to respond to the crisis. The project proposal entitled “Life in the time of COVID-19 - social implications on the security and well-being of vulnerable groups in the European context” is a direct response to this obligation.

Bearing this in mind, the project is planned to critically evaluate different normative techniques that states have used in order to cope with the COVID-19 pandemia and to assess their direct impact on power balance, democratic principal in general and rights of these who are subjected to family violence, struggling with mental issues or are underage and harmed by criminal offences. The project team members will conduct the empirical research at the five police departments centred in Pula, Rijeka, Zagreb, Split and Osijek in order to find out phenomenological and etiological shifts in crime against children and prohibited behaviours related to family violence. The regional distribution will be maintained in the second phase of empirical research dedicated to exploring the experiences of NGO service providers (focus group study) and exposure to family violence of service users (quantitative research with clients of NGO support system). The identical methodological framework will be applied in the assessment of information literacy skills and competences of NGO stuff and their users in the time of pandemics. The empirical phase of the research will be concluded with a study at the University Psychiatric Hospital Vrapče. The obtained theoretical and empirical project outcomes will be compared with the key research findings reached by Slovenian, Italian and Swedish project researchers. The project results will be shared with scientific and professional community, general public, policy makers and persons associated with vulnerability at research workshops, conferences and science popularisation events and initiatives. By combining different project tactics in interdisciplinary comparative settings, the project research team is strongly determined to reach the final project goal - to enhance the position of vulnerable persons during the state of emergency or quasi-emergency in the European context.