(2026) Science and education, 2, 17-25. Odessa.
Iryna Brynza,
Candidate of Psychological Sciences, Associate Professor,
Associate Professor at the Department of General and Differential Psychology,
The state institution “South Ukrainian National Pedagogical University named after K. D. Ushynsky”,
26, Staroportofrankivska Str., Odesa, Ukraine,
ORCID ID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7159-6639
Nataliia Chernenko,
Doctor of Pedagogical Sciences, Professor,
Professor at the Department of Educational Management and Public Administration,
The state institution “South Ukrainian National Pedagogical University named after K. D. Ushynsky”,
26, Staroportofrankivska Str., Odesa, Ukraine,
ORCID ID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2288-8824
EXISTENTIAL RESOURCES OF PERSONALITY IN PRESERVING MENTAL HEALTH UNDER CRISIS CONDITIONS
SUMMARY:
The article presents the results of an empirical study aimed at examining the specifics of the actualization of existential resources of the individual in maintaining mental health under crisis conditions. The relevance of the study is determined by the need for an in-depth analysis of existential resources as a key component of mental health, ensuring psychological resilience in situations of prolonged stress, uncertainty, and life losses. Among such resources, faith and hope occupy a central place, serving as critical determinants of adaptation and the preservation of psychological balance in crisis circumstances. It is substantiated that faith and hope are not merely abstract or purely ideological categories, but function as concrete psychological resources capable of supporting individual resilience. Faith is considered the foundation of existential meaning and internal support, contributing to the preservation of identity and the integrity of the self in conditions of loss, traumatic experience, or radical life uncertainty. Hope, in turn, is conceptualized as a dynamic resource oriented toward the future, which activates the search for opportunities, sustains motivational processes, and facilitates constructive coping with crisis experiences. To measure the level of psychological crisis, the study applied the «Questionnaire for the Diagnosis of Professional Crisis Experience» (O. Sannikova, I. Brynza). The assessment of the existential resource of faith was carried out using the «Questionnaire for the Study of Forms of Faith» (Yu. Alekseeva), which allowed the analysis of five forms of faith as separate resource factors. To evaluate the resource of hope, an author-developed version of the «Questionnaire for the Study of Forms of Hope» was used, aimed at identifying manifestations of hope as an emotional-cognitive component of personal resilience. Analysis of correlation matrices revealed statistically significant negative relationships between most indicators of psychological crisis and the resources of faith and hope, indicating an inverse linear relationship: a decrease in the level of existential resources is accompanied by intensified crisis experiences, whereas their actualization contributes to mitigating crisis manifestations. Comparative analysis demonstrates that a crisis state significantly transforms the structure of faith, shifting it from stable, socially and personally integrated forms toward ambivalent and compensatory ones. At the same time, the results confirm that faith in the same individual may have a multiple and internally contradictory character, combining productive and unproductive forms, rational and irrational elements, which should be considered when developing psychological support programs in crisis situations. It was found that in the non-crisis group, existential hope primarily performs regulatory and prognostic functions, ensuring the stability of personal functioning and the formation of a positive life perspective. In contrast, in the crisis group, hope acquires an ambivalent, fragmented, and compensatory character, highlighting the need for targeted psychological support. The development and strengthening of existential hope in crisis conditions should focus on fostering meaning-making resources, enhancing the subjectivity of the individual, and activating social support resources, in line with contemporary approaches to the psychological rehabilitation of individuals affected by military actions and forced displacement.
KEYWORDS:
existential resources of the individual, mental health, psychological crisis, resource of faith, resource of hope
FULL TEXT:
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