Self-Acceptance as a Personal Resource of Law Enforcement Officers in Experiencing Grief and Loss

Introduction. The phenomenon of self-acceptance is investigated by foreign and national psychologists as a basic integral characteristic of the personality, contributing to internal comfort, positive self-perception. At the same time, the study of self-acceptance as a personal resource is innovative in psychological research. Materials and Methods. An analysis of the content of the phenomenon of self-acceptance at different stages of experiencing grief was carried out, focusing on the periodization of E. Kübler-Ross, which includes five stages: shock or denial, anger and resentment, guilt and obsessions, suffering and depression, acceptance and reorganization. Consultation was provided for more than 70 officers who experienced grief. Results and Discussion. According to psychologists, personal resources contribute to the increased activity of the subject in the processes of self-regulation, self-improvement, self-development of the person, while self-acceptance plays a special role in the structure of a self-developing person and is a link between self-cognition and self-development, triggers self-regulation mechanisms. Therefore, self-acceptance can be considered as the personal resource of the subject. Self-acceptance is associated with basic personal entities, ensures the integrity and stability of the person, determines the effectiveness of activity and communication, psychological well-being and psychological health of the subject. In a situation of grief and loss, the acceptance of one's own contradictory emotions and feelings is one of the main factors of the "work of grief". At each stage of grief, acceptance performs universal psychological tasks, and the failure to resolve them leads to various psychological problems, the transformation of “normal” grief into “pathological” grief. Conclusions. An analysis of the content of the phenomenon of acceptance at different stages of experiencing grief was conducted, practical recommendations, techniques and methods for psychological support of law enforcement officers in experiencing grief and loss, focused on accepting their own emotions and feelings, were presented.