METHODOLOGICAL APPROACHES TO DETERMINING FORMS OF SUPPORT FOR INDIVIDUALS IN FINDING, RETHINKING AND SHAPING THE MEANING OF LIFE DURING WAR

Abstract

The russian aggression has raised the question of the meaning of life, understanding the specifics of one’s own and human existence in a fundamentally new social and spiritual atmosphere characterized by tension, constant contradictions and struggle of views. This encourages the individual to actively pursue moral searches, to realize the meaning of his or her own life, to search for his or her place and role in a cruel and unstable reality, and for the meaning of life in particular. The purpose of this study is to highlight methodological approaches to determining the forms of support and assistance to individuals in finding, rethinking and shaping the meaning of life. It has been determined that an in-depth study of the meaning of life reflects not only the historical and philosophical dynamics, but also the constant relevance of this issue in the context of human existence. War encourages a person to search for meaning under the influence of such experiences as: fear, anxiety, proximity to death, powerlessness, helplessness and others. Challenges such as loss of environment, property, relationships, and death of loved ones make this process dramatic. The essence of the psychological theories of the meaning of life by S. Freud, A. Adler, C. Jung, W. Frankl, and R. May is described. The author analyzes the methodology of providing psychological assistance to an individual in scientific approaches to finding and shaping the meaning of life during war, namely: hedonic approach; eudemonic approach; integrated approach; subjective-actual and existential. The author places special emphasis on the Jungian approach, according to which personality development is focused on the transcendental function, which reflects the ability of the individual to go beyond rational thinking and consciousness, revealing unknown aspects and archetypes, which contributes to the integration of various mental aspects and the expansion of personal experience. C. Jung also emphasized the importance of taking into account the influence of the past and the prospects of the future on the formation of the personality. He emphasized that the influence on the present arises not only from the past (causal approach), but also from the future (teleological approach), and thus the question of «the meaning of life» becomes an important topic in the context of this concept. The means that are widely used in psychotherapy regardless of the theoretical model and are recognized as effective in promoting self-reflection, understanding of one’s own resources and searching for and forming the meaning of life of an individual are considered, namely volunteerism («doing good» as a way to give a person the desired happiness and meaning); the Socratic method (making life easier by mobilizing the person’s internal resources); the method of reconstruction of memories (studying, changing or restoring memories in a person’s memory); Jungian metaphor and fairy tale therapy (metaphors, legends, fairy tales and parables provide rich material for studying images and facilitate work with the unconscious, which can help a person to reveal the unconscious and provoke inner development).