REGARDING THE URGENCY OF MILITARY CHAPLAINS INVOLVING ISSUE OF PSYCHOLOGICAL SUPPORT FOR BORDER GUARDS

Abstract

The article deals with the involvement of military chaplains in the process of psychological support of border guards professional activities, examines the views of psychologists on the relevance of the religious faith potential in the context of maintaining the individual mental health. The results of an empirical study conducted among the staff of the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine are highlighted. The study of the military chaplains pastoral activity as a means of psychological support for border guards is due to the factors of institutionalization of military chaplaincy in the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine, as well as the results of psychological research by both Ukrainian and foreign scientists. In total, 331 respondents were interviewed, residents of all our country regions (except for the temporarily occupied territories). In terms of age, the vast majority of interviewed border guards are people aged 16 to 30 (210 people, which is 63%). Among the respondents, 102 border guards are combatants (31%). 271 respondents (82%, the religious affiliation of the respondents vast majority is Orthodox) identified themselves as believers. It is established that religiosity is mostly declarative and not supported by participation in religious rites, visiting religious buildings, reading religious literature, active participation in the life of the religious community with which the believer identifies himself. The need to involve military chaplains in psychological support of the border guards professional activities and the expediency of developing certain models and joint action algorithms of border agency military chaplains and military psychologists to preserve the mental health of personnel is outlined. The conducted study identified problems that will need to be solved in the following works: to develop models and joint action algorithms of military chaplains and military psychologists in the psychological support of border guards professional activities and to investigate the border guards gender religiosity.