FEATURES OF FAMILY RELATIONSHIPS IN WAR CONDITIONS
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.32782/psy-visnyk/2025.4.13Keywords:
crisis conditions, traumatic impact, psychological features of family relationships in crisis conditions, resilience, socio-psychological adaptationAbstract
The article presents the results of an empirical study of the features of the functioning of romantic relationships in conditions of war in Ukraine. The aim of the work was to study the impact of traumatic events on the experience of relationships and the level of satisfaction with partner relationships in the period after February 24, 2022. Studies show that crisis conditions can affect various aspects of family functioning: family structure and organization; communicative processes; emotional sphere; family cohesion and adaptability; financial stability; mental health of family members; family beliefs and values.The empirical study covered 36 respondents, 67% of whom are in stable romantic relationships (duration of relationship over 5 years, marriage, cohabitation). Standardized questionnaires were used as instruments, such as the «Relationship Experience» (adaptation of Kazanja and Vtornikova), the Impact of Event Scale (IES), and the Life Events Checklist (LEC).Respondents were also asked to rate their relationship satisfaction on a Likert scale from 1 to 10 and to answer open- ended author’s questions.A study of the relationships between the consequences of traumatic events and relationship experience showed that traumatic war experience is associated with increased avoidant behavior in close relationships. A study of the impact of cohabitation/separate living showed a trend toward higher relationship satisfaction in couples living together.It was found that the experience of participating in or witnessing hostilities is associated with an increased level of avoidance in relationships, while the level of anxiety is less strongly correlated with traumatic experience. In addition, a reorientation of value orientations in relationships was recorded – emotional support, time together, and views came to the fore. The results obtained partially confirm the hypothesis that living together of partners has a positive effect on relationship satisfaction in war conditions compared to living apart; and are discussed in the context of the theory of family resilience and post-traumatic growth.
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