GENDER ASPECTS OF SOCIAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL ADAPTATION STRATEGIES AMONG INTERNALLY DISPLACED PERSONS (IDPS)

Abstract

Due to the military aggression by a neighboring hostile state, many Ukrainians have been forced to leave their permanent residences and relocate to safer regions of Ukraine and abroad, receiving the status of internally displaced persons (IDPs). The social and psychological adaptation of IDPs in their new environments is one of Ukraine’s pressing social issues. Forced relocation to a new and unfamiliar social environment significantly impacts their physical and psychological well-being, affecting their adaptive capacities, socialization, and quality of life.

The article argues that one of the most important aspects of socio-psychological adaptation is gender behavior. Gender characteristics of adaptation differ depending on the dominance of the expression of masculine or feminine character traits. Psychological masculinity is largely associated with the individualization of the personality, the gradual development of its independence from the environment to autonomy, from conformism to free self-determination. Psychological femininity is associated with the decentration of the personality, that is, the shift of the motivational and value dominant from egocentric and group-centric aspirations to universally compassionate and altruistic ones. Moreover, such decentration is based on unconscious processes, is manifested directly in feelings and desires and is not subject to direct volitional regulation.

Gender-based attitudes and stereotypes play a crucial role in forming social actions and behavioral strategies that affect individuals' adaptive abilities. This article presents a study of gender aspects in the social and psychological adaptation of IDPs from the Kherson region who have relocated to Vinnytsia. The findings indicate that gender differences in adaptation significantly influence psychological and social adaptation to new living conditions. The study identifies two key adaptation strategies among IDPs: “acceptance of responsibility” and “positive reappraisal,” with selection influenced by gender-based stereotypes among male and female IDPs.