PSYCHOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF FIRST-YEAR STUDENTS LIVING IN CONDITIONS OF CLIMATIC AND GEOGRAPHIC SOCIAL TENSIONS OF THE REPUBLIC OF TUVA

The article presents results of a study of psychological characteristics of Tuvan first-year students living in conditions of climatic and geographic social tensions of the Republic of Tuva. The peculiarity of the Republic of Tuva is not only harsh climate, national way of life and lifestyle, but also low socio-economic standards of living. The study was conducted in the framework of the monitoring in the University Health Centre with the computer program «Methodology for integrated assessment of physical and mental health of students in higher and secondary professional educational institutions» by R.I. Aisman. The Tuvan students were characterized by optimal parameters of anxiety, stress resistance, aggression and hostility, neurotization and psychopathology corresponding to the middle-age norms. They had quite a high level of motivation to succeed. Among the parameters of social and psychological adaptation, orientation to dysaptation prevailed. The nervous system's neurodynamic indicators indicated the medium-weak type of the nervous systems of Tuvinians. There have been identified gender characteristics of the girls, they had higher anxiety, hostility and motivation to succeed. The young men were more emotionally stable, calm, optimistic, because there were no persons with the high neurotization level among them. The girls were characterized by lower psychological adaptation, however, they had a higher level of physiological adaptation in comparison with the young men.

first-year students, anxiety, social and psychological adaptation, stress resistance, aggression and hostility, motivation for success, tapping test