POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER IN THE PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITY OF POLICE OFFICERS THROUGH THE PRISM OF CONTEMPORARY PSYCHOLOGICAL UNDERSTANDING

Abstract

The article presents a theoretical analysis of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as a complex psychological phenomenon within contemporary scientific discourse, with an emphasis on the specific features of its formation among police officers. It is substantiated that PTSD cannot be reduced to a set of clinical symptoms but should be understood as a dynamic process that develops through the interaction of traumatic experience, individual personal resources, cognitive-emotional stress-processing strategies, and the social and professional context. The evolution of scientific perspectives on PTSD is analyzed, ranging from early medical-descriptive interpretations to contemporary integrative psychological models that combine neuropsychological, cognitive, emotional, and sociocultural dimensions. The significance of cognitive-appraisal and transactional models of stress for understanding the mechanisms underlying the emergence and maintenance of post-traumatic reactions is demonstrated, as well as the role of impaired emotional regulation, integration of traumatic experience, and meaning-making processes. Particular attention is paid to the professional context of police work, in which traumatic experience is often cumulative and associated with prolonged exposure to high risk, moral dilemmas, and increased responsibility. The expediency of conceptualizing PTSD in police officers as a process accompanied by transformations of professional identity, emotional detachment, and a decline in the effectiveness of adaptive strategies is substantiated. The article also examines the concept of moral injury as an important direction in contemporary psychological understanding of PTSD, which makes it possible to expand traditional clinical approaches and to focus on the meaningand value-related dimensions of traumatic experience. The conclusion emphasizes the need for further development of integrative models of PTSD that take into account the professional specificity of individuals working under conditions of extreme psychological strain.