The relationship between psychological well-being and personal autonomy in representatives of extreme professions (in Russian)

Abstract

This study investigates the relationship between personal autonomy and psychological  well-being among specialists of extreme professions. Furthermore, it explores potential differences in psychological well-being across varying levels of personal autonomy. Purpose. This research aims to examine the correlation between personal autonomy and psychological well-being. Method. 86 EMERCOM specialists participated in this study. The following measures were employed: “Psychological Well-being and Personal Autonomy Questionnaire”, the Russian adaptation of the “General Causality Orientations Scale” (Dergacheva, Dorfman, Leontiev, 2008), the “Locus of Control Scale” (Bazhin, Golynkina, Etkind, 1984), the Russian adaptation of the “Relationship Profile Test” (R. Bornstein, adapted by Makushina, 2012), and the Russian modification of the “Scales of Psychological Well-Being” (C. Ryff, modified by N. N. Lepeshinskiy, 2007). Spearman’s rank-order correlation and the Mann — Whitney U-test were used for data analysis. Findings. A significant positive correlation was observed between overall psychological well-being and all measures of personal autonomy: Autonomous Causality Orientation (r = 0.626, p < 0.001), Internality (r = 0.543, p < 0.001), and Healthy Dependence (r = 0.627, p < 0.001). Significant differences (p < 0.01) in psychological well-being were also found between groups with different levels of personal autonomy. Conclusions. Psychological well-being among specialists of EMERCOM of Russia is directly linked to their level of personal autonomy. Higher levels of personal autonomy, both as a stable motivational trait and a characteristic of interpersonal relationships, are associated with greater psychological well-being. These findings provide a foundation for future research exploring this relationship and developing practical strategies to foster autonomy within the workplace, thereby enhancing the psychological well-being of professionals across various fields, particularly emergency responders.