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The Danger of Unrealistic Optimism: Linking Caregivers' Perceived Ability to Help Victims of Terror With Their Own Secondary Traumatic Stress
Author(s) -
SHALVI SHAUL,
SHENKMAN GEVA,
HANDGRAAF MICHEL J. J.,
DE DREU CARSTEN K. W.
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
journal of applied social psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.822
H-Index - 111
eISSN - 1559-1816
pISSN - 0021-9029
DOI - 10.1111/j.1559-1816.2011.00844.x
Subject(s) - optimism , psychology , vulnerability (computing) , perception , clinical psychology , social psychology , computer security , neuroscience , computer science
This study examined how caregivers' biased perceptions of ability to help traumatized patients relates to the caregivers' secondary traumatic stress (STS). There is reason to believe that caregivers overestimate their ability to help and underestimate their vulnerability to develop STS, but it is unclear how such unrealistic optimism relates to STS. The results show that Israeli caregivers working with terror victims believed that their ability to help traumatic patients is superior to their peers' while their likelihood to be negatively affected by such treatment is lower. Beyond the impact of the number of patients treated and caregivers' experience, unrealistic optimism was positively correlated to caregivers' STS. Theoretical and practical implications for those working with traumatized patients are discussed.