EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE AS A FACTOR OF EXISTENTIAL RESILIENCE OF THE INDIVIDUAL IN THE CONTEXT OF WAR: A PHILOSOPHICAL ANALYSIS

Abstract

B a c k g r o u n d . This article presents a philosophical analysis of emotional intelligence as a factor in shaping existential resilience in the context of war. Starting from the premise that war constitutes a limit situation that radically alters the conditions of human existence, the authors examine emotional intelligence not merely as a psychological competence, but as an ontological capacity topreserve personal integrity, authenticity, and moral responsibility. The study raises the question of internal resources that enable individuals to withstand traumatic challenges without losing connection to their value orientations.

M e t h o d s . The research employs philosophical-anthropological, phenomenological, andhermeneutic approaches. The analysis draws on the views of E. Husserl, M. Scheler, K. Jaspers, V. Frankl, M. Buber, E. Levinas, and M. Nussbaum, incorporating concepts from existential philosophy, logotherapy, the philosophy of ethics, and affect theory. This methodological framework enables the authors to uncover the deep meanings of affective experience in the context of existential survival.

R e s u l t s . The article argues that emotional intelligence fulfills three key functions: an integrative function, which ensures the meaningful unity of affective experience; an authentic function, which supports the preservation of identity and values; and a moral function, which cultivates the capacity for empathy and responsibility. Emotional intelligence makes it possible to transform traumatic experience into a source of new meanings, acting as a mechanism of existential resistance to dehumanization, moral erosion, and the fragmentation of the self. The preservation of humanity under wartime conditions is linked by the authors to the capacity for emotional reflection and ethical dialogue with the Other.

C o n c l u s i o n s . The authors conclude that emotional intelligence is a fundamental factor ofexistential resilience in wartime conditions. It provides an internal foundation, enables individuals tomaintain moral orientation, sustain authentic existence, and resist the destructive impact of extremecircumstances. In this sense, emotional intelligence emerges not only as an individual capability, butalso as a philosophical resource of survival and humaneness.