MEDITATION PRACTICES FOR COPING WITH COMBAT STRESS IN MILITARY PERSONNEL

Abstract

Relevance of the study: Military operations involve prolonged exposure to threat, the need to maintain a high level of readiness to respond, experiences of loss, and morally challenging situations. Mobilization that is adaptive during immediate danger may persist after the threat has passed and interfere with the transition to recovery. Mindfulness may serve as a psychological resource for regulating such states by enhancing awareness of present-moment experience, reducing automatic reactions, and promoting more flexible responses to emotional and bodily experiences. Meditation practices adapted to the specific experiences of military personnel represent a practical means of developing mindfulness.

Aim of the study: to develop and test a cycle of meditation practices aimed at coping with combat stress in military personnel and to identify changes in perceived stress and mindfulness following completion of the cycle.

Research methods: the study involved 32 military personnel. Perceived stress was assessed using the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10) developed by S. Cohen, T. Kamarck, and R. Mermelstein, in the Ukrainian-language adaptation by O. O. Veldbrekht and N. I. Tavrovetska. Mindfulness was assessed using the Short Five-Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire (POM-15), based on the model developed by R. A. Baer et al. and adapted by Ya. Yu. Kaplunenko and V. V. Kuchyna. Participants completed the “Psychological Body Armor: The Art of Interacting with Combat Stress” cycle, which comprised 12 meditation practices developed using principles of the Ericksonian approach. Perceived stress and mindfulness were assessed before and after completion of the cycle. Descriptive statistics and the paired-samples Student’s t-test were used for statistical analysis.

Results of the study: after completion of the meditation cycle, the mean perceived stress score decreased from 24.75 ± 5.01 to 20.50 ± 5.91 (p < 0.001). The overall mindfulness score increased from 38.00 ± 4.25 to 43.44 ± 4.66 (p < 0.001). Statistically significant positive changes were found for Observing (p = 0.003), Acting with Awareness (p < 0.001), Nonjudging of Inner Experience (p < 0.001), and Nonreactivity to Inner Experience (p < 0.001). Changes in the Describing facet did not reach statistical significance (p = 0.301). Thus, completion of the meditation cycle was accompanied by lower perceived stress and greater capacity to attend to present-moment experience, adopt a nonjudgmental stance toward internal reactions, and reduce automatic responses to them.

Conclusions: testing the meditation cycle among military personnel revealed statistically significant positive changes in perceived stress and most of the assessed mindfulness facets. The most pronounced changes concerned Acting with Awareness, Nonjudging of Inner Experience, and Nonreactivity to Inner Experience. The findings indicate that the developed cycle may be considered a promising psychological support tool for military personnel coping with combat stress. At the same time, the single-group study design requires caution in attributing the observed changes specifically to the intervention and indicates the need for further research involving a control group.