Kharkiv National University of Internal Affairs hosted the International Psychological Forum "Personality, Society, Law" – a large-scale scientific and practical event that brought together Ukrainian and foreign scientists, practical psychologists, specialists in the security and defense sector, representatives of higher education institutions, scientific institutions and professional communities. The organization and holding of the forum were ensured by the Department of Sociology and Psychology of the ERI No. 5, which once again confirmed its role as a powerful scientific and educational center that forms a modern psychological discourse in the field of security, law, social transformations and psychological assistance under martial law.

The forum became a representative international platform for professional dialogue, exchange of experience and presentation of current results of scientific research. The collection of materials included 118 abstracts of reports, and the geography of the participants covered not only Ukraine, but also Poland, the USA, Serbia, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and Sweden. Such a wide international format proved the high level of trust in the scientific platform of KhNUIA and the relevance of the raised topics in the global professional environment.

The focus of the forum participants was the psychological perspectives of the functioning of Ukrainian society under martial law. In the materials and speeches, the current problems and prospects for the development of domestic psychological science, the specifics of the activities of specialists of the security and defense forces in extreme conditions, as well as modern innovations in the practices of providing psychological assistance and psychological support to various categories of the population were comprehensively analyzed. Such issues are extremely important today for scientific understanding, professional training and development of effective practical solutions.

The forum opened with the participation of the university management and leading representatives of the scientific and professional community. Viktor Vasylenko, the First Vice-Rector of KhNUIA, Director of the Institute of Psychology named after H. S. Kostiuka of the NAES of Ukraine, academician of the NAES of Ukraine Oleh Kokun, Rector of Lviv State University of Internal Affairs Dmytro Shvets, as well as the First Vice-President of the National Academy of Legal Sciences of Ukraine, academician of the NALS of Ukraine Oleksandr Bandurka, whose speech emphasized the importance of interdepartmental interaction and consolidation of the efforts of various institutions and bodies in providing psychosocial support under martial law.

Speeches by invited Ukrainian and international experts dedicated to the most sensitive and at the same time strategically significant issues of modern psychological science and practice became extremely important for the participants. In particular, the Government Commissioner for Gender Policy, Kateryna Levchenko, in her report outlined the current directions of the state gender policy and emphasized the role of higher education institutions in the security and defense sector in the formation of a modern culture of equality, security and professional responsibility. Stanislav Larionov, a doctoral student and adjunct at the National Academy of the National Guard of Ukraine, highlighted the peculiarities of the readiness of military psychologists to master trauma-oriented therapeutic approaches, emphasizing the professional training of specialists capable of working with the consequences of combat stress and psych traumatization.

Of particular interest was the speech of Paul Miller –, an Honorary Professor of the Department of Sociology and Psychology of KhNUIA, an internationally recognized specialist in the field of psychiatry and trauma therapy, who raised the extremely important topic of moral damage and the psychology of war. The report was devoted to understanding the complex moral traumas experienced by military personnel and other combatants, and outlined those aspects that are of fundamental importance for clinicians, psychologists and specialists of the psychological care system today.

The speech of representatives of the Boston Clinic (USA) and the NGO «Self-Help Community» – Kateryna Buchko and Vitalii Kharechka, had a significant practice-oriented content. Within the scope of their report, they raised the issue of concern for children's mental health and their psychosocial support in conditions of distress. At the same time, it was this speech that actualized another extremely promising direction of international cooperation –, a unique course that will be introduced for the first time in Ukraine by specialists of the Department of Sociology and Psychology of KhNUIA, aimed at implementing modern approaches to psychological support and assistance to vulnerable categories of the population.

The important international dimension of the forum was strengthened by the speech of the Deputy Director of the International Policing and Public Protection Research Institute (IPPRI) of Anglia Ruskin University (Cambridge, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland) by Anna Markovska, who presented the results of a study of digital risks and safety of children in wartime conditions and outlined current challenges in the field of child protection in the digital environment.

The speeches of specialists directly involved in the psychological support of the security and defense sector also had a deep professional resonance. In particular, Viacheslav Oliinyk devoted his report to issues of post-experiential growth of Ukrainian servicemen – combatants. This speech was given special weight by its practical basis: the report was based on many years of painstaking work to provide assistance to veterans and military personnel. Yuliia Boiko-Buzyl focused on the prospects of using the resources of the Psychological Hub and on the urgency of building a modern infrastructure of psychological support for the personnel of the security and defense sector and their family members as an integral part of the psychological support system. In her report, Olha Pasko, a Professor of the Department of Psychology and Pedagogy of OSUIA, turned to the physiological direction of stress research as a resource of self-regulation under martial law, actualizing the importance of scientifically based approaches to preserving psychological stability and functional effectiveness of specialists. Ihor Avilov raised the topic of professional motivation of servicemen to perform tasks on the line of combat, which is extremely important for understanding the psychological mechanisms of endurance, stability and combat effectiveness. The so-called also joined the discussion of topical issues of psychological support under martial law the acting commander of military unit A4950 Oleksandr Bartoshevich, who focused on real tasks and practical challenges of the work of psychologists in army units.

The event was given special weight by the fact that it was not limited to purely academic discussion. The forum became a space for the integration of science, education and practice, in which fundamental psychological research was combined with applied solutions to support people, professional communities and society in the conditions of a long-term war reality. This format corresponds to modern challenges and strategic tasks of training specialists for the security and defense sector.

The holding of such a large-scale international event is convincing evidence that KhNUIA not only responds to the challenges of the times, but also forms intellectual and practical guidelines for the development of psychological science in Ukraine, strengthens interinstitutional and international cooperation, and promotes the development of modern approaches to psychological support, support and stability under martial law. The International Psychological Forum «Personality, Society, Law» became an important event in the scientific life of the university and a significant contribution to the development of Ukrainian psychology, focused on the current needs of the state, society and specialists who work daily in conditions of high responsibility and increased psychological stress.