BACKGROUND:
Some publications, as well as some own observations confi rm the opinion that mental condition of contemporary living people is not very good. Doubts about the average mental state concern, in particular, young people. This raises the question whether the mental condition of young people in our country diff ers signifi cantly from the average mental status in other European countries.

MATERIAL AND METHODS:
The authors performed a survey, using the own questionaire discussed in their previous work. They carried out comparative studies of psychological condition of two very similar groups of young people. These were fi rst year students of nursing studies in Belgium and Poland.

RESULTS:
The results of this study revealed statistically significant differences. It appears that students in Belgium have fewer emotional problems, while their engaging to social challenges are lower than among students in Poland.

CONCLUSIONS:
The premises exist behind that general mental condition of European nations is not good. This justify further research comparing mental condition of young people of different European countries.