Assessment of Mental Adaptation Disorders for Psychological Correction Tasks in Combatants of the Special Military Operation

Introduction. The increasing number of counterterrorism operations and local military engagements is accompanied by the development of combat stress among a significant number of participants in armed conflicts (combatants), who require medical and psychological assistance.

The intention is to identify the consistency of indicators of mental adaptation disorders in combatants using original and short screening methods for psychological correction tasks.

Methodology. 163 combat participants were examined, the average age of which was (34.3 ± 0.7) years. The average duration of participation in a special military operation was 7 [3; 12] months. The examination was conducted using original psychological tests and screening methods aimed at assessing post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), in particular, the military version of the Mississippi Scale for determining PTSD and the scale of primary care for post-traumatic stress disorder (PC-PTSD-5). Anxiety manifestations were assessed using the Beck Anxiety and General Anxiety Disorder Questionnaire-7 (GAD-7), while depressive symptoms were assessed using the Beck Depression Questionnaire and the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9). Behavioral attitudes were assessed using 10 adapted sincerity questions from a standardized personality assessment method. The text presents medians with upper and lower quartiles (Me [Q1; Q3]). The consistency of the results of the original and brief screening methods was evaluated using Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient.

Results and analysis. The average scores on the sincerity scale were 7 [6; 8] points, indicating a fairly high reliability of the assessment data. The results on the Mississippi Scale were 71 [63; 84] points, and on the PC-PTSD-5, they were 2 [1; 3] points. These can be characterized as the absence of mental adaptation disorders and a low likelihood of developing PTSD, respectively. The consistency of these indicators was moderate, positive, and statistically significant (r = 0.588; p < 0.001). The Beck Anxiety Inventory scores were 10 [4; 18] points, while the GAD-7 screening method yielded 5 [2; 6] points. These results indicated low or moderate anxiety, respectively. The consistency of these indicators was moderate, positive, and statistically significant (r = 0.598; p < 0.001). The average scores on the Beck Depression Inventory were 7 [3; 12] points, and on the PHQ-9 screening method, they were 5 [3; 8] points. These data indicated the absence or mild degree of depression, respectively. The consistency of these indicators was strong, positive, and statistically significant (r = 0.795; p < 0.001).

Conclusion. The conducted studies showed that short screening methods with a high degree of probability determine the declared psychological qualities in combatants, assessed by original tests. Their results can be trusted, and the methods are recommended for use in psychotherapy tasks.

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