STIGMATIZATION OF MILITARY: CHALLENGES AND OBSTACLES IN SOCIAL- PSYCHOLOGICAL READAPTATION TO CIVILIAN LIFE

Abstract

War as a social upheaval causes profound changes in the structure of society, in particular, the formation of new social groups that have special needs and require specialized social services. Military personnel, although not a new category in the context of social services, have become significantly more numerous since the beginning of Russia's large-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The number of demobilized and people returning from the war is growing every day, which creates new challenges for the system of providing social services. In addition, one of the main problems is the stigmatization of the military, which affects the effectiveness of the provision of these services. Initially, at the very beginning of the war, military personnel were perceived in society as heroes fighting for the independence and security of the country. However, over time, the positive perception changes to a negative one, which, in particular, is manifested in social stereotypes that contribute to their stigmatization. Stigma of the military may be associated with numerous factors, including psychological differences between those who have experienced combat and those who have remained at home. This situation leads to the fact that some military personnel may be perceived by society as "others", which has certain negative consequences for their reintegration into society after returning from the front. This, in turn, complicates the provision of necessary social services to them, since stigmatization can affect access to medical, psychological and social services, and also creates obstacles to social adaptation. In order to study the causes and consequences of stigmatization of the military in society, as well as its impact on the provision of social services, we conducted a theoretical analysis of foreign and domestic studies. It was found that stigmatization of the military is a global phenomenon that manifests itself in many countries, where the public distinguishes combatants from those who have not experienced them. One of the main aspects of this phenomenon is alienation, which arises due to the difference in the experience of war and peaceful life, which forms new social barriers. It is also important to understand how such social stereotypes can affect the processes of rehabilitation and readaptation of military personnel to civilian life, as well as their reintegration into social and economic processes.Thus, the analysis of the stigmatization of the military helps to identify the main barriers to the effective provision of social services and outline ways to overcome them. The results of the study indicate the importance of changes in the public perception of the military and the need to create support programs that will contribute to their rehabilitation and adaptation to civilian life, in particular through a change in attitudes towards them at the social level.