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Posttraumatic Stress Symptoms in Police Staff 12–18 Months After the Canterbury Earthquakes
Author(s) -
Surgenor Lois J.,
Snell Deborah L.,
Dorahy Martin J.
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
journal of traumatic stress
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.259
H-Index - 134
eISSN - 1573-6598
pISSN - 0894-9867
DOI - 10.1002/jts.21991
Subject(s) - optimism , coping (psychology) , posttraumatic stress , multilevel model , clinical psychology , distress , psychology , psychiatry , cross sectional study , occupational safety and health , harm , suicide prevention , human factors and ergonomics , medicine , injury prevention , poison control , medical emergency , social psychology , pathology , machine learning , computer science
Understanding posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms in police first‐responders is an underdeveloped field. Using a cross‐sectional survey, this study investigated demographic and occupational characteristics, coping resources and processes, along with first‐responder roles and consequences 18 months following a disaster. Hierarchical linear regression ( N = 576) showed that greater symptom levels were significantly positively associated with negative emotional coping (β = .31), a communications role (β = .08) and distress following exposure to resource losses (β = .14), grotesque scenes (β = .21), personal harm (β = .14), and concern for significant others (β = .17). Optimism alone was negatively associated (β = ‐.15), with the overall model being a modest fit (adjusted R 2 = .39). The findings highlight variables for further study in police.