Supporting civilians and professionals after crises
Implications for psychosocial care - Thesis Juul Gouweloos-Trines (2018)
In her PhD thesis, psychologist-researcher Juul Gouweloos-Trines focuses on psychosocial support for people affected by distressing events. How can the resilience and social environment of those affected be implemented most effectively to encourage natural recovery after a distressing event? Gouweloos-Trines examined this in high-risk occupations, such as the police, and in the context of a disaster.
People in 'high-risk occupations', such as police and ambulance workers, face repeated exposure to distressing events. The thesis shows that organisational stress, in particular, has a major impact on employee well-being. More health complaints are related to these stressors, such as a high workload or reorganisation, than to exposure to images or stories of sexual violence.
Support from colleagues important
In addition, a study of 812 ambulance workers revealed a relationship between feeling supported by supervisors and colleagues and being given time to recover after a traumatic event, and reduced feelings of anxiety and depression.
Refining and further developing psychosocial support
With this thesis, Juul Gouweloos-Trines aims to contribute to refining and further developing existing guidelines on psychosocial support following disasters, crises, and distressing events at work.
Publisher
Publisher
ARQ National Psychotrauma Centre