CURRENT ISSUES OF PSYCHOLOGICAL WELL-BEING OF YOUNG PEOPLE STUDYING FOR MILITARY SPECIALTIES: A CASE STUDY IN UKRAINE

Abstract

The article provides a comparative analysis of the importance of factors of psychological well-being of youth studying for a military profile in the pre-war and post-war periods. In the study, preference was given to the psycholinguistic research method, namely, the free association experiment. The associative experiment was conducted in December 2022. The indicators for the period of October 2021 were chosen as the basis for a comparative analysis of the importance of factors related to psychological well-being in the pre-war and post-war periods. The russian-Ukrainian war became a major traumatic event for young people, which they are unable to explain within the framework of their previous experience, which was reflected in the increase in the specific weight of the thematic group "Establishment and regulation of relations with the environment". There was a significant increase in the specific weight of the "Life goals" thematic group. At the same time, there is a mutual connection between the associations of the thematic groups "Life goals" and "Self-acceptance", which indicates a high level of development of a sense of coherence among cadets. In peacetime, the most important factor in the psychological well-being of cadets is self-acceptance. In wartime, the central role in maintaining/increasing the psychological well-being of young people is played by the actualization of a life goal, which can also be considered as a strategy for overcoming a specific stressor. Updating the life goal is extremely effective for young people studying for a military profile in terms of maintaining/increasing psychological well-being, because the life pattern of the cadets, which already provided for the performance of military duty, does not require either a change in the life scheme or a change in the perception of a stressful situation, for example, searching for its positive aspects.