THE RELATIONSHIP OF VICARIOUS TRAUMA AND DEPRESSION IN PSYCHOLOGISTS WORKING IN MILITARY CONFLICTS

Abstract

Purpose. The purpose of the article is to highlight the results of a study of the relationship between the level of vicarious trauma and the level of depression in psychologists who work during military conflicts. The article examines vicarious trauma and depression as psychological phenomena, where vicarious trauma is defined as a negative transformation of a psychologist that occurs as a result of empathic interaction with people who have experienced trauma, with similar to PTSD, but less intense characteristic reactions. Methods. In the research process, theoretical as well as psychodiagnostic methods were used, which ensured the realization of the ascertaining experiment: the Scale of Secondary Traumatic Stress, the Author's Questionnaire for Determining the Signs of Vicarious Trauma, the “Questionnaire for the assessment of mental health of the KMA – UDH”, the questionnaire “Evaluation of the level of psychological, physiological and professional maladjustment” by O.Rodina. Results. Depression is defined as a negative affective state characterized by sadness, emptiness, hopelessness, and hopelessness. Theoretical studies of vicarious trauma and depression by scientists were analyzed. The genesis of vicarious trauma and depression in psychologists was studied. It has been determined that there are significant associations between the level of vicarious trauma and depression, anxiety, PTSD, and alcohol use. A directly proportional effect of symptoms of vicarious trauma and the level of depression has been found, the consequences of which range from symptoms of low mood, chronic fatigue and irritability, memory lapses, lack of or deterioration of sleep quality to destructive changes in physical health. Conclusions. The hypothesis that a high level of vicarious trauma can cause depression in psychologists working during military conflicts has been confirmed. Symptoms of psychological, physiological and professional maladjustment of psychologists, such as somatovegetative disorders, violations of the “sleepactivity” cycle, worsening of well-being in the field of emotional disorders and features of social interaction, are most characteristic of psychologists with high levels of vicarious trauma and depression. Psychologists of this group are in the risk zone from the point of view of the development of depressive states in the future and deterioration of not only mental, but also physical health.