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The toll of the stresses of policing on officers’ physical and mental health and on their individual work and family functioning has been well documented in the literature. Given the well-established consequences of work-related stress on law enforcement, it becomes important to understand how officers are utilizing institutional support systems. Specifically, the purpose of this paper is to elucidate the relationship between officers and Employee Assistant Programs (EAPs).

Data were collected from surveys attached to an online officer training targeting domestic violence in law enforcement families in a large southern state.

A total of n=934 participants were retained for analyses. Few respondents (16.2 percent) reported accessing their EAPs. Totally, 56.4 percent reported knowing enough about their EAP and how to access it; 33 percent of participants would not use their EAPs for domestic violence concerns. No significant differences among officers who did and did not access their EAPs for workplace stress, posttraumatic stress, alcohol use, or domestic violence were identified. Significant differences in alcohol use, posttraumatic stress, and operational stress were identified in those who reported not knowing enough about how to access their EAP.

Concrete suggestions are offered to help increase officers’ knowledge and understanding of the importance of mental health and EAPs. Agencies should consider a more comprehensive approach to mental health to ensure that officers get the help they need.

Very little is known about the relationship that law enforcement officers have with EAP services. This study sheds light on some important differences in work-related stress, stress reactions, and knowledge and familiarity with EAP services.

After decades of focus on disaster, crisis, and trauma itself, in recent years more attention has been devoted to the study of human strengths and resilience, as reflected in the rise of positive psychology and strengths-based social work. In particular, psychological growth after trauma has been increasingly studied, and one of the official terms referring to the phenomenon is posttraumatic growth (PTG). The PTG literature reflects work on positive psychology, trauma recovery, and resilience. The main components associated with PTG are new possibilities, interpersonal growth, personal growth, appreciation for life, and spiritual change (Calhoun & Tedeschi, 2014). These domains have been tested and measured with a scale, the Posttraumatic Growth Inventory. While PTG and related concepts such as resilience have been studied in various populations, they have not yet been investigated extensively in Southeast Asia (SEA) populations. This chapter explores the psychological examination of resilience and PTG in the SEA context, with some discussion of the background of both positive psychological concepts and PTG research cross-culturally, and their application to the SEA region specifically. Brief relevant trauma history of the region, such as human-made and natural hazards impacting the region’s individuals and communities, and similarities and differences in the results of these traumas will be described. Implications for broader international work as well as cultural and clinical implications also will be discussed in this chapter.

Unaccompanied refugee minors (URMs) are known to be subjected to several potentially traumatic life events, risking more mental health problems than other populations of same age. Evidence concerning the mental health of Eritrean URMs in Ethiopia is scarce. This paper aims to present an estimate of probable posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) within this group and describes its associations with traumatic life events and participants’ characteristics.

This cross-sectional quantitative study surveyed a random sample of 384 Eritrean URMs, aged 12–17 years, in the Shimelba refugee camp. The Stressful Life Events (SLE) questionnaire and the Reactions of Adolescents to Traumatic Stress (RATS) questionnaire were used to assess traumatic events and PTSD symptoms, respectively. Descriptive statistics, the chi-square test with the odds-ratio and stepwise regression were used to analyze data.

Large proportions of the URMs had experienced traumatic events including physical abuse (261, 68%), separation from family against will (240, 62.5%), a stressful life event in which they were in danger (198, 51.6%), and important changes in family life (196, 51%). About 38% of the URMs met the criteria for classifying probable PTSD diagnosis, suggesting that they are likely to have PTSD. The odds-ratio statistic revealed that girls and the oldest age group (15–17 years) were at a greater risk for PTSD. The total score on the SLE appeared to be the robust predictor, explaining 28% of the variance in RATS total scores.

Self-report questionnaires used in this study yield less diagnostic information than extensive interviews. Additional information should be collected from the viewpoint of significant adults (caregivers/ teachers). Such information would be crucial in assessing the degree of impairment in daily functioning and the severity of the symptoms.

Awareness of the stressful experiences and the mental health status of the URMs has implications for taking preventive and curative measures to provide a broad range of intervention programs and psychosocial support.

The purpose of the study was to assess the relationship between child sexual abuse (CSA) and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in female inmates in China. A total of 471 participants were assessed for CSA, personality traits, coping strategies, and frequency of lifetime PTSD. Results demonstrated that CSA and negative coping were predictive factors for lifetime PTSD among female inmates after personality traits were controlled. The findings suggest that CSA is one potential factor contributing to lifetime PTSD among female inmates. The importance of screening for CSA among female inmates was highly emphasized. Early intervention and prevention programmes based on coping skills may be useful to forestall the development of chronic PTSD in female inmates.

The purpose of this study is to explore the empirical literature on the resilience of firefighters related to potentially traumatic events (PTE). This paper identifies how resilience is defined in this particular research field, reveals trends in applied research methods and examines the main topics addressed in previous research.

Web of Science, PsycARTICLES and Google Scholar databases were searched, as well as a secondary manual screening of the reference lists of all the selected studies and Dutch academic journals. Based on this review, 54 empirical articles were included in the current paper.

Firstly, this paper revealed that there is no consensus in how to define the concept of resilience in this specific research area. A second observation was that most of the selected studies used a quantitative, cross-sectional research design. Finally, the 54 empirical studies provided insights on six topics: the role of the organization, demographic factors, personal characteristics, coping strategies, social support and the reactions of firefighters in the aftermath of PTE. Comparing the empirical results was challenged by the different interpretations and denominations of the concept of resilience and the myriad of measurement techniques applied across the selected articles.

This literature review discovered some promising avenues for future research regarding resilience of firefighters. Moreover, it demonstrated that studying resilience is particularly interesting as the identification of supporting factors leads to a better understanding of how to enhance the well-being, job satisfaction and job performance of firefighters.

In recent years, a wide range of psychosocial health interventions have been implemented among military service members and their families. However, there are questions over the evaluative rigor of these interventions. We conducted a systematic review of this literature, rating each relevant study (k = 111) on five evaluative rigor scales (type of control group, approach to participant assignment, outcome quality, number of measurement time points, and follow-up distality). The most frequently coded values on three of the five scales (control group type, participant assignment, and follow-up distality) were those indicating the lowest level of operationally defined rigor. Logistic regression results indicate that the evaluative rigor of intervention studies has largely remained consistent over time, with exceptions indicating that rigor has decreased. Analyses among seven military sub-populations indicate that interventions conducted among soldiers completing basic training, soldiers returning from combat deployment, and combat veterans have had, on average, the greatest evaluative rigor. However, variability in mean scores across evaluative rigor scales within sub-populations highlights the unique methodological hurdles common to different military settings. Recommendations for better standardizing the intervention evaluation process are discussed.

This chapter is based on a study investigating the effect of downward mobbing on employees' stress-related growth (SRG) with the mediator role of burnout and the moderator role of personality hardiness and coworker support. Data were collected from 367 employees (177 females, 186 males) through MTurk. Self-report measures were administered to participants who have been exposed to mobbing by their supervisor/manager in at least one of their previous work experiences. Moderated mediation analysis suggested that burnout mediates the relationship between mobbing and SRG where burnout and growth were negatively associated. Coworker support appeared as a significant but inadequate moderator to promote growth. Post hoc analysis suggested that there is a curvilinear relationship between burnout and growth, and hardiness is a significant – but insufficient – moderator in the direct relationship. Implications for science and practice will be discussed.

The purpose of this study is (1) to confirm the relationship between the two dimensions of social desirability (pretending and denying), self-reported stress and health reports in police officers and (2) to assess whether dysfunctions in basal cortisol profiles are related to social desirability.

Social desirability is known to influence how individuals respond to sensitive topics, such as questions concerning health in the workplace, and has usually been defined according to two dimensions: pretending and denying. However, it is not known whether social desirability is only a bias in responding to health surveys or a more general attitude of denying problems and pretending to be stronger than one is in the everyday life. If the latter is true, social desirability may have important health implications, and underlying mechanisms must be described. In total, 77 police officers completed questionnaires measuring social desirability (denying and pretending), perceived stress as well as mental and somatic health symptoms. They were further instructed to collect saliva samples for cortisol concentrations assays.

These preliminary results showed that denying was negatively related to the report of stress and health symptoms. Furthermore, police officers higher in pretending showed a flatter diurnal cortisol slope.

The correlation between dysregulation of the hypothalmic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, as expressed by a flatter cortisol slope, and a higher score in the pretending subscale suggests that looking for social approval by inflating one's capacities is related to chronic work-related stress, making the individual more vulnerable to stress-related disease.

To study the potential health-relevant consequences and underlying mechanisms of social desirability bias related to police culture by including stress biomarkers.

This chapter summarizes the literature on mindfulness and its impact of postdisaster response. Although the use of mindfulness is still in its infancy in Southeast Asia (SEA), initial studies suggest it has potential as a means to address survivors’ posttrauma symptoms. Given cultural nuances such as a discomfort in emotional expression and shame, mindfulness is non-intrusive and encourages non-judgmental acceptance. Mindfulness has been used in group settings which is congruent with the region’s collectivist orientation. In addition, given the importance of spirituality, we suggest that mindfulness may be an inclusive approach that is familiar and acceptable to SEA survivors.

Background: Post‐traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is over represented in the prisoner population and is predictive of violence and suicide. This raises issues in relation to prisoner management, as well as theoretical issues such as why there is a range of vulnerability for PTSD. The current study examines the relationship between PTSD and personality profiles of prisoners. Method: Data from 1305 participants in the NSW survey of health in prisoners are examined to identify relationships between personality profiles derived from the Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI) and PTSD. Participants are grouped as experiencing no trauma; with a trauma history but no PTSD; and being diagnosed with PTSD. A logistic regression modelled significant predictors of PTSD. These data indicated that women prisoners report PTSD at twice the rate of males. An increased risk for PTSD is associated with high Harm Avoidance, low Self‐Directedness, high Persistence and high Self‐Transcendence. Conclusions: A combination of both temperament and character traits influences the trajectory towards PTSD development. Targeted treatment of these traits is needed in addressing the problems of prisoners with PTSD and managing the associated risks of violence and suicide.