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Methods for studying the motivation of extreme volunteers discussed at the platform

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Figure for the news

On March 31, a webinar titled “Applied Psychological Diagnostics for Studying the Motivation of Extreme Volunteers” was held at the platform “Science in Publications: From Idea to Practice”. 

The speaker of the webinar, Vladislav E. Petrov, clarified that only volunteering associated with risks to health and life can be considered extreme. At present, this includes assistance in the zone of the special military operation.

Vladislav E. Petrov described each of the six diagnostic methods, which are original and were developed at the Faculty of Extreme Psychology of MSUPE. They are successfully applied in real-life conditions. Below are the characteristics assessed by these methods.

  1. “Questionnaire for assessing personal choice of participation in extreme volunteering”. Diagnoses value-semantic, cognitive, emotional-volitional, and behavioral domains.
  2. “Questionnaire for assessing the propensity for extreme volunteering”. Identifies such traits as ideological commitment, activity, altruism, prosocial orientation, and tolerance.
  3. “Questionnaire for assessing manifestations of professional personality deformation”. Diagnoses levels of rigidity, hyper-organization, imperativeness, reduction of professional responsibilities, communicative jargonization, and pseudo-activity.
  4. “Method for assessing stagnation in professional and personal development”. Identifies awareness of developmental limitations, experience of monotony, and loss of motivation for self-realization.
  5. “Questionnaire for assessing the propensity to maintain official secrecy”. Reflects the development of such qualities as normativity, confidentiality, prognostic ability, and self-control.
  6. “Method for assessing information-related stress tolerance”. Identifies levels of information activity, information skepticism, indiscriminate information consumption, sensitivity to informational stress, and the tendency to disseminate stress-inducing information, etc.

The research showed that ideologically motivated volunteers (whose motivation is the well-being of their country and loved ones) are less prone to developing PTSD.

The author provided a detailed explanation of each quality and its relevance for participants.

The methods discussed are also used to assess personnel in law enforcement agencies.

The audience expressed appreciation for the well-developed methodological tools. At the end of the webinar, a discussion unfolded on how readiness to perform heroic acts relates to such important characteristics of volunteers as normativity, pragmatism, confidentiality, and self-control.

Video recording of the webinar

Calendar of webinars and meetings of the project “Science in Publications” for 2026

Publications by the speaker:

  1. Petrov, V.E. Validation of the questionnaire for assessing personal choice of participation in extreme volunteering. Determinants of the Development of the Economy, Education, and Russian Society on the Threshold of a New Technological Era: Proceedings of International Scientific and Practical Conferences. Ed. by V.D. Seryakov. Moscow: Pero, 2025, pp. 57–64.
  2. Petrov, V.E. A vector model of psychological diagnostics of information-related stress tolerance among law enforcement personnel. Applied Psychology and Pedagogy, 2023, 8(1), 150–160.
  3. Petrov, V.E. The relationship between personal choice of participation in extreme volunteering and the severity of post-stress conditions. Human Capital, 2024, No. 12 (192), 261–268.
  4. Petrov, V.E. The relationship between self-determination and personal choice of participation in extreme volunteering. Psychology and Law, 2025, 15(1), 260–274.
  5. Petrov, V.E., Kokurin, A.V., Litvinova, A.V. Diagnostics of information-psychological stress tolerance among law enforcement personnel. Applied Legal Psychology, 2023, No. 4 (65), 44–53.
  6. Petrov, V.E., Sokolova, A.A. Diagnostic assessment of the severity of moral traumatization among law enforcement personnel. Extreme Psychology in an Extreme World: Proceedings of the IV Scientific Forum with International Participation. Ed. by V.M. Pozdnyakov, V.E. Petrov. Moscow: MSUPE, 2025, pp. 154–166.
  7. Petrov, V.E. Information-psychological influence as a predictor of the choice to participate in extreme volunteering. Psychology and Pedagogy of Professional Activity, 2024, No. 4, 69–74.
  8. Petrov, V.E. Multitasking propensity as a predictor of motivation for participation in extreme volunteering. Human Capital, 2025, No. 1 (193), 113–121.
  9. Petrov, V.E., Kokurin, A.V., Pozdnyakov, V.M. Personal predictors of volunteering in everyday and extreme conditions. Psychology and Law, 2023, 13(4), 164–174.
  10. Petrov, V.E. Personal choice of participation in extreme volunteering: concept, psychological diagnostics, and support. Doctoral dissertation. Moscow, 2025. 581 p.
  11. Petrov, V.E. Personal choice of participation in extreme volunteering as a protector against professional deformation. Bulletin of the St. Petersburg University of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia, 2024, No. 4 (104), 354–365.
  12. Petrov, V.E., Pyerova, E.N. A method for psychological diagnostics of military personnel’s propensity to maintain official secrecy. Socio-Psychological Problems in the Service Sector: Proceedings of an International Scientific and Practical Conference. Ed. by V.D. Seryakov. Moscow: Sputnik+, 2022, pp. 161–168.
  13. Petrov, V.E. A model for assessing personal choice of participation in extreme co-participatory activity and psychological types of volunteers. Applied Psychology and Pedagogy, 2025, 10(2), 183–194.
  14. Petrov, V.E., Kokurin, A.V., Litvinova, A.V. Negative information-psychological influence as a determinant of stagnation in professional and personal development among law enforcement personnel. Moscow University Psychology Bulletin, 2024, 47(3), 207.
  15. Petrov, V.E. Psychodiagnostic model for assessing the propensity for political volunteering. Applied Psychology and Pedagogy, 2024, 9(3), 70–82.
  16. Petrov, V.E. Psychodiagnostic assessment of manifestations of professional personality deformation among extreme volunteers. Extreme Psychology: Integration of Science and Practice: Proceedings of the All-Russian Scientific and Practical Conference with International Participation. Moscow: MSUPE, 2025, pp. 75–85.
  17. Petrov, V.E. Psychodiagnostic assessment of military personnel’s propensity to maintain official secrecy. Current Issues in Professional and Practical Psychology (Dyachenkov Readings — 2022): The 1st International Conference: Proceedings of Scientific Papers / Comp. by A.V. Kravchenko; Ed. by N.B. Karabushchenko, V.M. Kruk. Moscow: Military University named after Alexander Nevsky of the Ministry of Defense of Russia, 2022, pp. 498–502.
  18. Petrov, V.E., Tsvetkova, D.O., Dobrovolsky, Yu.A. Psychometric characteristics of diagnostic tools used to study the personality of volunteers. Determinants of the Development of the Economy, Education, and Russian Society on the Threshold of a New Technological Era: Proceedings of International Scientific and Practical Conferences / Ed. by V.D. Seryakov. Moscow: Pero, 2025, pp. 82–86.
  19. Petrov, V.E. A factor model of personal choice of participation in extreme volunteering and its diagnostics. Applied Psychology and Pedagogy, 2024, 9(4), 75–94.
  20. Petrov, V.E. Integrity of worldview as a predictor of personal choice of participation in extreme volunteering. Legal Psychology, 2024, No. 3, 2–6.