Psychological aspects of readiness of military officers for combat actions

Abstract

The article examines the psychological aspects of military readiness for military operations. The theoretical aspects of the understanding of psychological readiness for combat operations are highlighted and an empirical study of the features of the psychological readiness for combat operations of soldiers of the airborne assault troops at the level of motivational, emotional-volitional, social-psychological aspects is carried out. The following methodological tools were used at the beginning of the study: the Adaptability-200 method, which provided an assessment of adaptability and resistance to combat stress;
- The general self-efficacy scale of R. Schwarzer and M. Jerusalem, which assesses the confidence of servicemen in their own abilities to overcome difficulties that arise during the performance of combat tasks;
- Methodology "Motivation of professional activity" by K. Zamfir, modified by A. Rean for determining the level of internal and external motivation for professional activity.
To conduct an empirical study, we formed a sample that included 63 servicemen of the Armed Forces of Ukraine who had not yet taken direct part in military operations on the borders and occupied territories of our state. The results of the empirical study showed that the psychological readiness of military personnel to participate in military operations is a complex, multi-component phenomenon that depends on a number of personal and motivational factors. It was found that a high level of adaptability, internal motivation, moral and ethical normativity, communicative potential and self-efficacy contribute to the formation of a stable psychological readiness for combat operations. At the same time, negative factors, such as external negative motivation, tendency to deviant behavior and suicidal risk, reduce general adaptability and increase vulnerability to stress. On the basis of the obtained results, it is recommended to implement complex programs of psychological training of military personnel, which include the development of internal motivation, moral and ethical values, communication skills and self-motivation, and the prevention of maladaptation or suicidal tendencies, which will constitute the perspective of our research.