SENSATION SEEKING AND STRESS COPING STRATEGIES OF PARTICIPANTS IN MILITARY MISSIONS IN AFGHANISTAN AND ANTARCTIC EXPEDITIONS
Journal Title: Journal of Applied Sports Sciences - Year 2018, Vol 1, Issue 1
Abstract
The activities performed by people who go on military missions or on Antarctic expeditions to Livingston Island often arise various questions and interpretations. On the one hand, they suppose a tendency toward risky acts; on the other hand, they require discipline and balance in one’s behavior. The aim of our study was to examine the peculiarities of the need of security and the need of sensation seeking as basic personal variables of participants in military missions in Afghanistan and Bulgarian Antarctic expeditions and to examine their relation to the coping strategies applied. The research was done among 141 individuals (107 participants in Bulgarian military contingent which took part in an international NATO mission in Afghanistan in 2017 and 34 participants in two Bulgarian Antarctic expedition on Livingston Island in 2014/2015 and 2016/2017. All the individuals researched were divided into groups according to their age, gender and rank. We used: 1) Need of security assessment test (A. Velichkov, M. Radoslavova, S. Vassileva, V. Todorov, 1998). 2) Coping Orientations to Problems Experienced Scale – COPE – 1 (Carver, et al, 1989), adapted for Bulgarian conditions (M. Georgiev et al, 2003) and 3) Research methods of psychic instability and sensation seeking, adapted by A. Velichkov and M. Radoslavova (2005). It is based on M. Zuckerman’s methods (1979, 1994). The researched participants in military missions and the explorers from Antarctic expeditions showed significant differences along the indexes between the two groups. The participants in military mission have lower values along all scales of the need of sensation seeking in comparison with the established norms for the Bulgarian sample and higher values of the need of security. The results of the participants in the Antarctic expeditions are particularly interesting. Regardless of their pronounced inclination to adventurous experiences and risky behavior, to hasty and impulsive actions, when subjected to tension, uncertainty and stress they revert to cognitive engaged coping strategies, which suppose active coping, planning, mobilization and a sense of control over the situation. The established regularities are a valuable reference point both for the selection of the participants in military missions and expeditions and for the insurance of their safety.
Authors and Affiliations
Tatiana Iancheva, Galina Domuschieva-Rogleva, Milena Kuleva
Keywords
Related Articles
- EP ID EP331937
- DOI -
- Views 129
- Downloads 0
FRONT-HAND-PUNCH SPEED IMPROVEMENT EXPERIMENTAL METHODOLOGY IN KARATE
This article presents the development of an experimental methodology that aims to improve the speed of the front-hand punch in karate. The rationale behind developing this methodology is that the speed of the front-hand...
MANAGEMENT AND CONTROL OF SPORTS PREPARATION OF 14-15-YEAR-OLD FEMALE BASKETBALL PLAYERS
Knowing the age and gender characteristics of children is a prerequisite for the sports pedagogue to manage the different stages of the multi-annual sports training. The complex development of motor skills raises the que...
FACTOR STRUCTURE AND MAJOR FACTORS OF PHYSICAL ABILITY OF 13-14-YEAR-OLD PUPILS
Physical activity is an important element and criterium for a healthy lifestyle. The level of physical ability determines the degree to which an organism adapts to its environment and therefore the development and condit...
EVALUATING THE MOTOR COMPETENCE OF HEARING IMPAIRED PRIMARY SCHOOL STUDENTS
Motor Competence (MC) is the ability to perform a wide range of motor activities, relying on adequate levels of motor coordination and physical capacity to achieve. The aim of this study was to assess the development of...
A STATISTICAL APPROACH TO THE DETERMINATION OF THE MAJOR CONTRIBUTING ANTHROPOMETRIC PARAMETER(S) FOR REGIONAL VARIATION IN BODY MASS INDEX IN COASTAL AND PLAIN REGIONS OF INDIA: A PILOT COHORT STUDY
An estimate of body mass index (BMI) is a convenient technique to determine a healthy weight in accordance with height and is based on certain anthropometric parameters. This study was undertaken to statistically analyze...