MODERN WORLD APPROACHES TO PROFESSIONAL REHABILITATION AND SOCIAL INTEGRATION OF VETERANS

Abstract

The article provides a comparative analysis of five modern approaches to vocational rehabilitation and social integration of vulnerable groups, including combat veterans: an inclusive model of employment of persons with disabilities (N. Schreuer, & D. Sachs), a trauma-informed approach to working with veterans with PTSD (A. Kostanyan, S. Hunt & D. Westwood), a biopsychosocial model of work as a mental health resource (G. Waddell & K. Burton), a communitybased approach to rehabilitation (G. Ben-Dor & G. Liran), and an existential model of professional growth based on post-traumatic experience (R. Dekel). The aim of the article is to reveal the conceptual foundations of each of the approaches, their key ideas, practical implications, caveats, and potential for transforming the policy of returning veterans to civilian life. The study proves that inclusive, adaptive, and humanistic rehabilitation is a necessary condition for social healing in post-traumatic societies. The study made the following conclusions. Despite the different focuses of the vision of the analyzed problem, all five approaches demonstrate a common understanding: work is not only a form of employment, but also an indicator of social inclusion, inner healing and personal fulfillment in conditions of peaceful life. Rehabilitation cannot be reduced only to a return to the labor market. It must be humanistic, adaptive and contextually sensitive to veterans – taking into account combat trauma, psycho-emotional state, social environment and value orientations of the individual. The analytical approach we applied allowed us to identify both common features and unique features of each model. This, in turn, can serve as a basis for adapting national rehabilitation policies in countries undergoing post-war reconstruction.