GENDER DIFFERENCES IN THE RESILIENCE OF STUDENT YOUTH IN CONDITIONS OF WAR

Abstract

The article analyzes gender-specific aspects of the manifestation and development of resilience among university students during the war in Ukraine. Personal resilience is conceptualized as the capacity to adapt and reorganize oneself under adverse conditions, to restore psychological equilibrium, and to maintain healthy functioning. The empirical study revealed a predominance of a moderate level of resilience among both male and female students. No statistically significant gender differences were found in overall resilience; however, differences were identified in resilience resources and coping strategies. For both groups, key factors in coping with stress include logical and critical thinking, faith, imagination, and physical activity. At the same time, male students in challenging life situations demonstrate a greater tendency toward critical problem analysis and dissimulation, as well as optimism, planning, and rational problemsolving. Female students, more often than males, seek social support and express emotions more openly. They also show a stronger tendency to reduce stress through withdrawal/reflection, shifting attention to alternative activities, problem analysis, and maintaining self-control. Both groups of respondents demonstrate flexibility in the use of cognitive and behavioral coping strategies; however, the female sample employs a broader range of emotional coping mechanisms to manage stress. Nearly half of both male and female participants use adaptive cognitive coping strategies (47.3% and 42.1%, respectively) and relatively adaptive behavioral coping strategies (44.4% and 50%, respectively), while 77.8% of males and 63.1% of females utilize adaptive emotional coping. At the same time, a considerable proportion of respondents of both genders resort to maladaptive coping strategies in stressful situations. Students of both sexes demonstrate an awareness of the meaning of life and the presence of life goals; however, female students are more likely to report that this meaning has already been found, whereas male students are significantly more active in existential searching. In the male sample, medium and above-average levels of self-efficacy predominate, while in the female sample, levels above average are more prevalent. The results of the study can be used to develop gender-sensitive programs for fostering resilience among student youth in wartime conditions.