NORMALIZATION OF DANGER: ASPECTS OF UKRAINIAN SOCIETY’S ADAPTATION IN A TIME OF WAR

Abstract

This article presents a theoretical analysis of the phenomenon of the normalization of danger as a specific socio-psychological process that develops under conditions of prolonged and recurring threat, particularly in the context of war. The relevance of the study stems from the fact that in today’s world, there is a growing number of situations in which significant segments of the population are forced to function for extended periods under conditions of chronic danger. Under such conditions, the threat ceases to be a single crisis event and gradually transforms into a persistent element of the living environment, affecting the cognitive, emotional, behavioral, and social aspects of an individual’s functioning. This problem takes on particular significance in the context of the war in Ukraine, where the population has long been subjected to constant rocket attacks, air raid alerts, information overload, and general uncertainty. Similar processes are also characteristic of other regions of the world experiencing prolonged conflicts, which attests to the universality of the problem of living under constant threat. Based on an analysis of contemporary foreign and Ukrainian studies, particularly concepts of prolonged traumatic stress, daily war stressors, psychological resilience, and coping strategies, it is argued that existing approaches do not sufficiently explain the mechanism of integrating danger into the structure of everyday life. In this regard, the authors propose a definition of the normalization of danger as a process of transforming the perception of threat, within which it gradually loses its status as an exceptional event and takes on the characteristics of a familiar backdrop to existence. The article examines the structure of the normalization of danger, which includes cognitive, emotional, behavioral, and social levels of manifestation. Possible scenarios for the development of this process are described-adaptive, exhausting, and transformational-which reflect different variants of psychological functioning of the individual under conditions of chronic danger. It is emphasized that the normalization of danger can act both as a resource for sustaining life and as a factor in the accumulation of latent psychological tension. It is concluded that the study of the phenomenon of the normalization of danger expands theoretical understanding of the psychological mechanisms of human functioning in extreme conditions and opens up prospects for further scientific research in the field of the psychology of war and crisis situations.