THE PROBLEM OF MENTAL HEALTH IN THE CONTEXT OF THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC: THE CLASSIFICATION OF PSYCHOPATHOLOGICAL DISORDERS

Abstract

The global pandemic of the new coronavirus infection COVID-19, which the world community is facing for the first time, has had widespread consequences and critical changes in all societies around the world. There is no doubt about the impact of the pandemic on human mental health. In the context of the pandemic, the number of cases of heterogeneous mental disorders in the general population and, to a greater extent, among medical workers has increased dramatically. This paper is devoted to the study of the problem and the specifics of social phobia, its phenomenology, developmental features, and variants of manifestation in the clinic of schizophrenia in the framework of medical psychology. The purpose of the study was to identify the characteristics of socio-phobic reactions in individuals with paranoid schizophrenia. The following research methods were used in the study: the Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale, a brief version of the Fear of Negative Evaluation Scale by Leary (BFNE), the Social Avoidance and Distress Scale ("SADS"), conversation, observation. The results of clinical and psychological research have shown that the features of the manifestations of social phobic reactions in individuals with paranoid schizophrenia are more pronounced; they are dominated by the fear of negative assessment, avoidance of social interaction situations and social anxiety. The practical significance of the study lies in the fact that the results obtained will give an opportunity not only to expand the understanding of the development mechanisms and structure of the disease, but also to determine the ways of psychotherapy to provide psychological adaptation, as well as the prevention of disease progression in conditions of uncertainty, increased tension, and social isolation.