Fear of war and individual resilience: A theoretical analysis of the mechanisms of psychological adaptation

The relevance of this study stems from the prolonged impact of the threat of war on an individual’s mental functioning and the need for a scientific understanding of the psychological mechanisms of adaptation to wartime conditions. Fear of war is a natural reaction to a real or potential threat to life, health and safety; however, in conditions of prolonged uncertainty and repeated exposure to war-related stressors, it can become chronic and impair adaptive functioning. Resilience is an important psychological resource for maintaining and restoring functionality in such conditions. The aim of this article was to provide a theoretical justification for the interrelationship between fear of war and individual resilience, as well as to identify and systematise the main psychological mechanisms of adaptation to a prolonged war-related threat. An analytical synthesis has been carried out of 35 academic works by Ukrainian and international authors devoted to the issues of fear of war, war-related anxiety, stress, resilience, coping behaviour, emotional regulation and mental health. Theoretical and comparative analysis, systematisation, generalisation and conceptual modelling were employed. It has been established that fear of war, war-related anxiety and war-related stress are interrelated yet conceptually distinct psychological phenomena. It has been demonstrated that psychological adaptation to a prolonged threat of war is determined not only by the objective intensity of the danger, but also by the characteristics of its subjective assessment, emotional self-regulation, the flexibility of coping behaviour, self-efficacy, social support and the mobilisation of personal and meaningful resources. Six interrelated mechanisms of psychological adaptation have been systematised: cognitive assessment of the threat, emotional regulation, regulatory and coping flexibility, mobilisation of personal resources, socio-contextual regulation, and the integration of traumatic and meaningful experiences. An integrative model of psychological adaptation to prolonged exposure to the threat of war is proposed. The theoretical validity of understanding resilience not as the absence of fear or psychological distress, but as an integrative dynamic capacity of the individual, based on the interaction of personal, cognitive, emotional-regulatory, behavioural and social resources, which ensures the preservation, restoration and maintenance of adaptive psychological functioning under conditions of prolonged stress. The practical value of the study lies in the possibility of using the proposed systematisation and integrative model as a theoretical basis for the development of programmes for psychological prevention, support and the development of resilience, as well as for the subsequent empirical testing of the identified interrelationships