Educational staff's tolerance for uncertainty and its relationship with psychological health in wartime conditions

Abstract

Introduction. Uncertainty experienced by Ukrainians as a result of the war unleashed by the Russian Federation against Ukraine necessitates the development of tolerance for uncertainty among the staff of various types of organizations, including educational institutions. Aim: to analyze the level of educational staff's tolerance for uncertainty and its relationship with their psychological health in wartime conditions. Methods. The research was carried out using a set of instruments called "Mental Health in Conditions of War", which included assessment tools and a questionnaire, which were aimed at studying various aspects of mental health of the staff of educational organizations. Results. Indicators of educational staff's tolerance for uncertainty in wartime conditions were analyzed. It was found that the most pronounced components of educational staff's tolerance for uncertainty in wartime conditions were "attitude to difficult tasks" and "preference for uncertainty". More than a quarter of the respondents had a high general index of tolerance for uncertainty. Among the components of educational staff's psychological health, the reflective-personal, emotional, and operational-functional components ("internal control") had the most significant relationship with the indicators of educational staff's tolerance for uncertainty in wartime conditions. Conclusions. In wartime conditions, the general index as well as the components of educational staff's tolerance for uncertainty (attitude to complex tasks, preference for uncertainty, and attitude to uncertain situations) have relationship with the main components of educational staff's psychological health.