The impact of tolerance on uncertainty on the mental adaptation of servicemen

The article presents the results of a comprehensive psychological and psychophysiological study of the impact of tolerance on uncertainty on mental adaptation among officers of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. The instrumental and diagnostic complex consisted of activity-behavioral, personal, emotional-volitional, psychophysiological methods. The definition of the psychophysiological features of the response to stress and the assessment of the state of the autonomic nervous system was carried out using Biofeedback. Following methods were used during the research — statistical method of clustering by the k-means method, Kolmogorov-Smirnov criterion, nonparametric Mann-Whitney criterion U for independent samples, construction of classification trees with moderation of significant factors. Also the article contains the description of the psychological profiles of officers with high and low meanings of tolerance for uncertainty. During the research it was found that the level of tolerance to uncertainty has an influence on the level of the mental situation, depending on the conditions of service. So, the group of people with high meanings of tolerance for uncertainty will show mental stability and professional reliability in a situation of extreme profile. It is found that high tolerance to uncertainty in the conditions of service in peacetime is associated with severe symptoms of emotional burnout, and such personal features as impulsivity, incontinence, risk appetite, and self-dissatisfaction. And the group with a low level of tolerance to uncertainty under extreme conditions will have high professional reliability and mental stability in conditions of service in peacetime.

1. Ahtyamov V.S. Psihologicheskie usloviya prinyatiya upravlencheskih reshenij rukovoditelyami v stressogennyh situaciyah. [Psychological conditions for making managerial decisions by managers in stressful situations]: Avtoref. dis. kand. psihol. nauk. — Moscow, — 2013. 25 p. (In Russian).
2. Bulygina V.G., Shport S.V., Dubinskij A.A., Pronicheva M.M. Vliyanie ehkstremal’nyh faktorov sluzhebnoj deyatel’nosti na psihicheskoe zdorov’e specialistov opasnyh professij (obzor zarubezhnyh issledovanij). [Influence of extreme factors of official activity on mental health of specialists in dangerous occupations (review of foreign studies)] Mediko-biologicheskie i social’no-psihologicheskie problemy bezopasnosti v chrezvychajnyh situaciyah. 2017. № 3. Pp. 93—100. DOI 10.25016/2541748720170393100. (In Russian).
3. Zelenova M.E., Zaharov A.V. Vygoranie i stress v kontekste professional’nogo zdorov’ya voennosluzhashchih. [Burnout and stress in the context of professional health of servicemen]. Social’naya psihologiya i obshchestvo. 2014. Tom 5. № 2. Pp. 50—70. (In Russian).
4. Kabanova T.N., SHmakova E.M., Sautova L.N. Psihologicheskie osobennosti prinyatiya reshenij u sotrudnikov silovyh struktur. [Psychological features of decision-making among law enforcement officers] Prikladnaya yuridicheskaya psihologiya. 2017. № 3. Pp. 25—35. (In Russian).
5. Kovaleva M.E., Bulygina V.G. Psihofiziologicheskie osobennosti regulyacii ehmocional’nyh reakcij u specialistov opasnyh professij. [EHlektronnyj resurs] [Psychophysiological features of the regulation of emotional reactions in specialists of dangerous occupations]. Psihologiya i pravo. 2017. Tom 7. № 1. Pp. 53— 67. doi:10.17759/psylaw.2017070105 (In Russian).
6. Kovaleva M.E., Bulygina V.G. Psihofiziologicheskie prediktory psihicheskoj adaptivnosti u specialistov opasnyh professij (na primere voennosluzhashchih). [Electronic resource] [Psychophysiological predictors of mental adaptability in specialists of dangerous occupations (on the example of military personnel)] Psihologiya i pravo. 2017. Tom 7. № 4. Pp. 137—150. doi:10.17759/psylaw.2017070411 (In Russian).
7. Kolpakova L.M. Psihologiya adaptivnosti k trudnoj situacii (na primere materej, imeyushchih detej s dvigatel’noj patologiej) [Psychology of adaptability to a difficult situation (on the example of mothers with children with motor pathology) ] Dis. dokt. psihol. nauk. Kazan, 2011. 467 p. (In Russian).
8. Kornilova T.V. Novyj oprosnik tolerantnosti-intolerantnosti k neopredelennosti. [A new questionnaire of tolerance-intolerance to uncertainty] Psihologicheskij zhurnal. 2010. T. 31. № 1. Pp. 74—86. (In Russian).
9. Krasnov E.V., Kornilova T.V. EHmocional’nyj intellekt i tolernatnost’ k neopredelennosti kak prediktory rezul’tativnosti deyatel’nosti voennyh rukovoditelej. [Emotional intelligence and tolerance to uncertainty as predictors of military leaders ‘ performance.] // Vestnik SPbGU. 2016. Vol. 16. № 3. (In Russian).
10. Litvincev S.V., SHamrej V.K., Lytkin V.M. Posttravmaticheskie stressovye rasstrojstva. Uchebnoe posobie. [Post-traumatic stress disorder. Tutorial.] St. Petersburg, 1999, 30 p. (In Russian).
11. Rybnikov V.Yu. Psihologicheskoe prognozirovanie nadezhnosti deyatel’nosti i korrekciya dezadaptivnyh nervno — psihicheskih sostoyanij specialistov ehkstremal’nogo profilya. [Psychological prediction of the reliability of activity and correction of disadaptive neuropsychic states of specialists of extreme profile.] St. Petersburg: St. Petersburg. Ministry of Internal Affairs, 2000. 205 p. (In Russian).
12. Trifonova TA, Mischenko NV, Klimov IA. Ocenka adaptacionnogo sostoyaniya studentov: monografiya. [Assessment of students’ adaptive status: monograph.] Vladimir: Publishing House «Arkaim LLC», 2016. 94 p. (In Russian).
13. SHamionov R.M. Sootnoshenie tolerantnosti k neopredelennosti i adaptacionnoj gotovnosti lichnosti k izmeneniyam. [The ratio of tolerance to uncertainty and adaptation readiness for change.] // Vestnik Rossijskogo universiteta druzhby narodov. Seriya: Psihologiya i pedagogika. 2016. Vol 3. Pp. 28—39. (In Russian).
14. Shamrey V.K., Evdokimov V.I., Grigoriev S.G., Lobachev A.V., Sivashchenko P.P. Pokazateli psihicheskih rasstrojstv u voennosluzhashchih Vooruzhennyh sil Rossijskoj Federacii (2003—2016 gg.). Monografiya. [Indicators of mental disorders among servicemen of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation (2003—2016). Monograph.] Military Medical Academy. SM Kirov, All-Russian Center for Emergency and Radiation Medicine. AM Nikiforova EMERCOM of Russia. St. Petersburg: Politechnica- service, 2017. 129 p. (In Russian).
15. Cooke G.P., Doust J.A., Steele M.C. A survey of resilience, burnout, and tolerance of uncertainty in Australian general practice registrars. // BMC Med. Educ. 2013. Vol. 13. Pp. 2.
16. Dörfler-Dierken A. Ambiguity Tolerance and the Concept of «Innere Führung». // ENDCProceedings. 2013. Vol. 17. P. 121—134.
17. Furnham A. A content, correlation and factor analytic study of four tolerance of ambiguity questionnaires. // Personality and Individual Differences. 1994. Vol. 16. №. 3. Pp. 403—410.
18. Kimo Takayesu J., Ramoska E.A., Clark T.R. et al. Factors associated with burnout during emergency medicine residency // Acad. Emerg. Med. 2014. Vol. 21. Pp. 1031—1035.
19. Kuhn G., Goldberg R., Compton S. Tolerance for uncertainty, burnout, and satisfaction with the career of emergency medicine. // Ann. Emerg. Med. 2009. Vol. 54. Pp. 106—113 (e106).
20. McClary R. An investigation into the relationship between tolerance of ambiguity and creativity among military officers // Kansas State University, 2009. doi: https://krex.kstate.edu/dspace/handle/2097/2210
21. Oden K.B., Lohani M., McCoy M., Crutchfield J., Rivers S. Embedding emotional intelligence into military training co texts // Manufacturing. 2015. Vol. 3. Pp. 4052—4059.
22. Perez D., Barkhurst M. Paradoxes of leadership in police management // Cengage Learning. 2012. 387р
23. Ulmer Jr.W.F. Military leadership into the 21st century: another «bridge too far?» // Parameters. 2010. Vol. 40. №. 4. P. 135—156.