THE INFLUENCE OF GENDER STEREOTYPES ON THE REHABILITATION PROCESS OF CLIENTS WHO HAVE SUFFERED A CORONAVIRUS INFECTION (CОVID-19)

The article presents the results of a clinical and psychological study of clients who underwent COVID. The main hypothesis of the study was the assumption that the rehabilitation process of postcovid clients is influenced primarily by those stereotypes that were formed before the disease, among which the gender stereotype occupies an important place. The author considers one male and two female gender stereotypes that are approved in Russian society. The male stereotype prescribes a “real” man to have good health, initiative, and independence. Female stereotypes approve of two opposite images of a woman: on the one hand – a “housewife”, who completely gave herself to the care of her husband and children, on the other – a modern woman, focused primarily on professional activities. The study was conducted from September 2020 to February 2021 on the basis of the Regional Center for Rehabilitation of the Disabled (Yekaterinburg). After the study, it was found that men and women with a feminine gender role are more likely to enter rehabilitation, and the rehabilitation of these clients ends with an improvement in the condition. A fairly large percentage of both men and women with a masculine gender role did not improve their condition after rehabilitation. Attention is drawn to the fact that a fairly large percentage of men with a masculine gender role have a paranoid and egocentric attitude to the disease, which complicates the rehabilitation process. The obtained data allow us to conclude that when rehabilitating post-covid clients, it is necessary to pay attention to the stereotypes that were formed before the disease. Such stereotypes include the gender role that the client adheres to.