SUPPORT SERVICES OFFICER AS A SUBJECT OF EARLY IDENTIFICATIONOF SOCIAL RISKS IN A MILITARY UNIT

Abstract

Background. Social stability within a military unit is a key factor in ensuring a favourable moral and psychological climate, combat readiness, and the effective performance of assigned tasks. A support services officer acts as a central figure in the system of early identification of social risks, capable of detecting potential problems at the level of interpersonal interaction, group dynamics, and the organizational culture of the unit even before the emergence of open conflicts or social tension within military groups.
Methods. The study employed a set of methods, including: systemic analysis of social processes in military groups; content analysis of regulatory and legal acts and guiding documents of the Armed Forces of Ukraine; analysis of preventive social intervention practices carried out by support services officers; integrative analysis of interaction with command staff, psychological services, and medical units; and elements of a case study analysis concerning the identification of social risks in specific units.
Results. The study demonstrated that the support services officer performs a comprehensive function in the early identification of social risks by combining observation of personnel behavior, sociometric analysis of group interactions, integration of information received from commanders and psychologists, and implementation of preventive measures. The main indicators of social risks were identified, including changes in communicative activity, the emergence of closed subgroups, avoidance of collective interaction, and increased conflict or isolation among individual servicemen. The analysis of interaction practices with command staff and unit services showed that an integrated approach increases the effectiveness of early risk identification, enables forecasting of their development, and facilitates timely influence on the formation of a socially stable environment within the unit.
Conclusions. Expanding the functional role of the support services officer within the system of early identification of social risks contributes to enhancing the social stability, cohesion, and moral and psychological climate of a military unit. The integration of observation methods, sociometric and analytical analysis, together with coordination with command staff and other services, makes it possible to establish a comprehensive system of preventive influence. Such an approach ensures the timely identification and neutralization of potential threats, increases the effectiveness of unit task performance, and creates the foundation for the resilience of the military team during the fulfillment of assigned missions.