Spiritual resources for survival
https://doi.org/10.24884/2219-8245-2025-17-4-59-68
Abstract
Psychological resources enable individuals to adapt to the impact of mental trauma. These resources include a wide range of intrapsychic phenomena, such as coping resources, psychological defense mechanisms, locus of control, and self-esteem. These personal resources provide individuals with the highest level of functioning. If the traumatic impact extends beyond everyday stress, during the process of psychological recovery, the individual utilizes the opportunity to transition to a different, spiritual level of existence, where they discover a fundamentally different category of survival and adaptation resources. The category of spirituality, developed in the literature, can be applied in the practice of providing psychological assistance to individuals who have suffered severe mental trauma. The spiritual level of a person's adaptation to mental trauma presupposes their inclusion in a reality more general than an individual existence limited by the confines of everyday life. Engagement in an ideological, philosophical, and religious metaconstruct allows the individual, transcending their own egocentric structure, to rely on metavalues more significant than the individual values of human life. Within this framework, mental trauma can be reinterpreted, losing its painful content. This creates a different worldview in which the identity destroyed by trauma can be restored and conditions for its post-traumatic growth and development are created.
About the Author
S. L. Solovieva
North-West State Medical University named after I.I. Mechnikov
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
Professor, Department of Psychotherapy, Medical Psychology, and Sexology
St. Petersburg
Tel.: +7 921 561 5776
References
1. Ivanickij A.V. Psihologicheskij resurs kak integral'naya harakteristika lichnosti. Sovremennye problemy nauki i obrazovaniya (Modern problems of science and education). 2015;(2-3):157. (in Russian)
2. Shipova N.S., Sevast'yanova U.Yu. Ponyatie resursa v psihologii: opredelenie i associativnye svyazi. Vestnik Kostromskogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta. Seriya: Pedagogika. Psihologiya. Sociokinetika (Bulletin of Kostroma State University. Series: Pedagogy. Psychology. Sociokinetics). 2020;26(4):105-110. (in Russian) doi: 10.34216/2073-1426-2020-26-4-105-110
3. Kalashnikova S.A. Lichnostnye resursy kak integral'naya harakteristika lichnosti. Molodoj uchenyj (Young scientist). 2011;2(8):84-87. (in Russian)
4. Ulyaeva L. G. Psihologicheskie resursy: ponyatie, vidy, funkcii, rol' v samorealizacii lichnosti. Zhivaya psihologiya (Living Psychology). 2019;6(4): 255-265. (in Russian)
5. Ivanova T.Yu., Leont'ev D.A., Osin E. N., Rasskazova E. I., Kosheleva N.V. Sovremennye problemy izucheniya lichnostnyh resursov v professional'noj deyatel'nosti. Organizacionnaya psihologiya (Organizational Psychology). 2018;8(1): 85–121. (in Russian)
6. Mclain David L. The Mstat-I: A New Measure of an Individual'S Tolerance for Ambiguity. Educational and Psychological Measurement. 1993;53:183. doi: 10.1177/0013164493053001020
7. Salvatore M. Hardiness: The courage to grow from stresses. The Journal of Positive Psychology/ 2006; 1(3): 160–168. doi:10.1080/17439760600619609
8. Khoshaba D., Maddi, S. Early Antecedents of Hardiness/ Consulting Psychology Journal. 1999;51(2):106 - 117.
9. Carver C. S., Scheier M. F. Optimism. In C. R. Snyder, S. J. Lopez (eds.). Handbook of Positive Psychology (221–244). Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2002, 221-244.
10. Janoff-Bulman R. Assumptive worlds and the stress of traumatic events: Application of the schema construct. Social Cognition. 1989;7:113–136.
11. Antonovsky A. The sense of coherence as a determinant in health. In J. D. Matarazzo (Ed.) Behavioral Health: A Handbook of Health Enhancement and Disease Prevention. N.Y.: John Wiley, 1984, 114-129.
12. Bandura A. Self-efficacy: Toward a unifying theory of behavior change. Psychological Review. 1977;84:191–215.
13. Bonanno G. A. Clarifying and extending the construct of adult resilience. American Psychologist. 2005;60(3):265–267.
14. Malenov A.A. Resursy lichnosti i ih realizaciya v prostranstve psihologicheskogo obrazovaniya. Diss.na soisk.uch.stepeni kand.psihol.nauk. Omsk, 2021, S. 220. (in Russian)
15. Kolotil'shchikova E.A. Psihoterapiya nevroticheskih rasstrojstv: psihologicheskie faktory i mekhanizmy. Vestnik psihiatrii i psihologii Chuvashii (Bulletin of Psychiatry and Psychology of Chuvashia.). 2015;1(2):146-170. (in Russian)
16. Karvasarskij B. D. Psihoterapiya: ucheb. dlya vuzov. Izd. 2-e, pererab. SPb.: Piter, 2002. (in Russian)
17. Ancyferova L.I. Lichnost' v trudnyh zhiznennyh usloviyah: pereosmyslivanie, preobrazovanie situacij i psihologicheskaya zashchita. Psihologicheskij zhurnal (Psychological journal). 1994;(1):3-16. (in Russian)
18. Tarabrina N.V. Psihologiya posttravmaticheskogo stressa: Teoriya i praktika. M.: Institut psihologii RAN, 2009. (in Russian)
19. Yaspers K. Obshchaya psihopatologiya, per. s nem. L.O.Akopyana. M.: KoLibri, Azbuka-Attikus, 2022. (in Russian)
20. Uilber Ken. Religiya budushchego. Vseob"emlyushchij potencial velikih tradicij duhovnoj mudrosti, per.s angl. E. Pustoshkina, nauch.red. A.Narin'yani. M.: Mann, Ivanov i Ferber, 2023. (in Russian)
21. Ancyferova L.I. Razvitie lichnosti i problemy gerontopsihologii. M.: Institut psihologii RAN, 2006. (in Russian)
22. Nikol'skaya I.M., Granovskaya R.M. Psihologiya very kak osnova krizisnoj psihologicheskoj pomoshchi v sovladanii s perezhivaniem utraty. Vestnik psihoterapii (Bulletin of Psychotherapy). 2014;(1):39–58. (in Russian)
23. Padun M.A. Sociocultural factors in the experience of post-traumatic stress. Internet journal "World of Science". Available at: https://mir-nauki.com/PDF/24PSMN518.pdf (accessed 12 October 2025)
24. Ivanov A., Zhumatij N. Reabilitaciya lichnosti voennosluzhashchih, postradavshih v boevyh dejstviyah. Razvitie lichnosti (Personality development). 2003;(4):143-152. (in Russian)
25. Vorob'eva L.I. «Duhovnost'» v psihologii: filosofsko-metodologicheskij analiz. Kul'turnoistoricheskaya psihologiya (Cultural-historical psychology). 2019;15(3):32-40. (in Russian) doi:10.17759/chp.2019150304
26. Ozhiganova G.V. Psihologicheskie aspekty duhovnosti. Chast' 2. Duhovnye sposobnosti. Psihologicheskij zhurnal (Psychological journal). 2010;31(5):39–53. (in Russian)
27. Yakushkin N.V. Cennostno-smyslovye harakteristiki lichnosti v postkatastrofnyj period. Vestnik VGMU (Bulletin of VSMU). 2006;5(1):97-100. (in Russian)
28. Kuzmina T.I. Using the "Self-Preservation Standard" Questionnaire in Psychological Work with Combat Participants. Personality in Extreme Conditions and Crisis Situations of Life (Collection of Scientific Articles of the VII International Scientific-Practical Conference) Vladivostok, 2017, 291 p.
29. Volynskaya A. S. Kategoriya «duhovnost'» v issledovaniyah vnutrennego mira lichnosti. Aktual'nye issledovaniya (Current research). 2023;(49):48-52. (in Russian)
30. Tedeschi R. G., Calhoun L. G. Posttraumatic growth: Conceptual foundations and empirical evidence. Psychological Inquiry. 2004; 15:1–18. doi:10.1207/s15327965pli1501_01
31. Zhuravleva A.L., Sergienko E.A. Stress, vygoranie, sovladanie v sovremennom kontekste. M.: Institut psihologii RAN, 2011. (in Russian)
32. Verzhibok G.V. Identichnost' kak mnogomernyj sistemnyj konstrukt i osnovanie utverzhdeniya mental'nosti. Social'no-psihologicheskie problemy mental'nosti / mentaliteta: sbornik nauchnyh statej (Social and psychological problems of mentality: a collection of scientific articles). 2020;16: 27-38. (in Russian)
33. Ivanov A.V. Evrazijstvo: klyuchevye idei, cennosti, politicheskie prioritety. Barnaul: Azbuka, 2007. (in Russian)
34. Trofimov V.K. Istoki i sushchnost' russkogo nacional'nogo mentaliteta (social'nofilosofskij aspekt). Avtoref. kan. diss. Ekaterinburg, 2001. (in Russian)
35. Berdyaev, N. The Russian Idea. Electronic library of free books. Available at: http://iknigi.net/avtor-nikolay-berdyaev/23177-russkaya-ideya-nikolayberdyaev/read/page1.html (accessed 12 October 2025)
36. Bessonova T.I. Problema regulyacii normativno-lichnostnogo i moral'no-nravstvennogo razvitiya sovremennogo studenta v prostranstve akademicheskoj etiki i akademicheskogo etiketa. Mezhdunarodnyj nauchno-issledovatel'skij zhurnal (International Research Journal). 2020;(6–2):139–142. doi: 10.23670/IRJ.2020.96.6.066. (in Russian)
37. Zelyanina A.N., Padun M.A. K probleme posttravmaticheskogo lichnostnogo rosta: sovremennoe sostoyanie i perspektivy. Psihologicheskie issledovaniya (Psychological Research). 2017;10(53):4. doi:10.54359/ps.v10i53.380 (in Russian)
38. Kefeli I.F., Shevchenko N.N. Bol'shaya Evraziya: civilizacionnoe prostranstvo, ob"edinitel'naya ideologiya, proektirovanie budushchego. SPb: ID «Petropolis», OOO «Geopolitika i bezopasnost'», 2018. (in Russian)
39. Yung K.G. Tevistokskie lekcii. Issledovanie processa individuacii. Per. s angl. M.: «Reflbuk», K.: «Vakler», 1998. (in Russian)
40. Shan'kov F.M. Obrashchenie k duhovnomu i religioznomu sovladaniyu v psihoterapii. Obzor zapadnyh issledovanij. Konsul'tativnaya psihologiya i psihoterapiya (Counseling Psychology and Psychotherapy). 2016;24(5):151-177. (in Russian) doi:10.17759/cpp.2016240509
41. Sidorov P.I. Religioznyj resurs mental'noj mediciny. Ekologiya cheloveka (Human Ecology). 2014;(5):17-27. (in Russian)
42. Karvasarskij B.D. Psihoterapevticheskaya enciklopediya. SPb.: Piter Kom, 1998. (in Russian)
43. Robert W. Motta. Secondary Trauma. Silent Suffering and Its Treatment. Department of Psychology Hofstra University Hempstead. NY.: Springer Nature Switzerland AG, 2023. 189 p.
Review
For citations:
Solovieva S.L. Spiritual resources for survival. Medical Psychology in Russia. 2025;17(4):59-68. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.24884/2219-8245-2025-17-4-59-68
Views:
18
Email this article 