Thwarted Belongingness and PTSD Symptom Severity among Firefighters: The Role of Emotion Regulation Difficulties

Leonard, Samuel; Vujanovic, Anka A.

doi:10.1177/01454455211002105

Cited by 8 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 49 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Leonard and Vujanovic (2021) examined the relationship between thwarted belongingness, emotion regulation difficulties, and PTSD symptom severity in trauma-exposed firefighters. Their results showed that perceived or actual social disconnectedness in this sample was related to greater emotion regulation difficulties and greater levels of PTSD symptoms.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Firefighter Stress and Mental Health: Introduction to the Special Issue

2021

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The past decade has witnessed burgeoning interest and concern regarding the mental health of firefighters. This increased attention is due, in part, to research documenting higher rates of psychiatric problems, including depression, substance abuse, sleep disturbances, posttraumatic stress disorder, and suicidality in fire rescue personnel compared to civilians. Similarly, the National Institute for Occupation Safety and Health (2014) has identified disturbingly elevated rates of physical health difficulties in firefighters, most notably high blood pressure, coronary heart disease, death due heart attacks, as well as different forms of cancer. Despite the heightened awareness of the mental and physical health challenges in this population, behavioral research specifically targeting firefighters is limited. With this is mind, we asked prominent researchers and clinicians working in this area to present results of their early investigative efforts in our Special Issue on “Behavioral Approaches with Firefighters”. In this Introduction, we provide brief summaries of the studies comprising the Issue. Articles in this issue address topics of sleep, PTSD, substance use, physical health concerns, and provide assessment and treatment considerations. A primary goal of the Issue is to stimulate further behavioral research with this group of deserving yet underserved first responders. Moreover, the Issue serves as a tribute to the men and women of the fire service who dedicate and risk their lives to serve their community.

show abstract

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Firefighter Stress and Mental Health: Introduction to the Special Issue

2021

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…This study was a secondary analysis of data from a larger project examining stress and health-related behaviors among firefighters (Leonard & Vujanovic, 2022). The current sample included 155 firefighters (93.5% male; M age = 42.2, SD = 9.8) recruited online from career, volunteer, and combination (i.e., volunteer and career) departments in and around a large metropolitan area in the southern United States.…”

Section: Participantsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Associations of resilience and hope with mental and physical health among firefighters

et al. 2023

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Objective Firefighters represent an understudied population with high rates of chronic exposure to stress and potentially traumatic events. Thus, there is a need to identify modifiable resilience factors to address posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms (PTSD) and chronic pain in firefighters to inform prevention and intervention efforts. Methods The current sample included 155 firefighters (93.5% male; Mage = 42.2, SD = 9.8) recruited online from career, volunteer, and combination (i.e., volunteer and career) departments in a large metropolitan area in the southern United States. Results Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to investigate the associations between/among resilience and hope on PTSD symptoms, chronic pain, well‐being, and posttraumatic growth (PTG). Resilience had a stronger, negative relationship with PTSD and chronic pain compared to hope, while hope had a stronger, positive relationship with PTG and well‐being compared to resilience. Hope and resilience combined predicted 10%–33% of the variance in the outcomes. Conclusion The current findings may provide evidence to promote interventions that increase resilience and hope in firefighters.

show abstract

“…Firefighter PTSD symptom severity has been associated with various factors. Some of these factors include thwarted belongingness, anxiety sensitivity, emotional regulation difficulties, high levels of self-blame, low levels of social support, negative emotionality, and negative self-appraisal (Bryant & Guthrie, 2007; Lebeaut et al, 2022; Leonard & Vujanovic, 2022; Meyer et al, 2012, 2021; Paltell et al, 2019). Interestingly, firefighters appear to have low rates of PTSD and depression over the first 3 years of their career despite experiencing numerous traumatic incidents (Gulliver et al, 2021).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Trauma symptoms and suicidal ideation in firefighters with consideration of exposure to natural disaster.

Herzog¹,

O’Dare²,

King³

et al. 2023

Traumatology

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Firefighters are exposed to a variety of potentially traumatic incidents in their work (Sattler et al., 2014). High levels of trauma exposure put firefighters at risk for mental disorders and symptoms. Using a survey designed to assess the mental health needs of firefighters from a hurricane disaster zone, the authors examined the prevalence of depression, anxiety, posttraumatic stress disorder, alcohol misuse, and suicide. The authors found that the firefighters in the sample reported moderate-to-high levels of mental health symptoms. Moreover, we found that job-related exposure to natural disaster plays a statistically significant role in predicting posttraumatic stress disorder, which provides further evidence of increased risk for mental health symptoms among first responders. More research is necessary to determine the types of events that contribute significantly to negative mental health responses in firefighters.

show abstract

Thwarted Belongingness and PTSD Symptom Severity among Firefighters: The Role of Emotion Regulation Difficulties

Cited by 8 publications

References 49 publications

Firefighter Stress and Mental Health: Introduction to the Special Issue

Firefighter Stress and Mental Health: Introduction to the Special Issue

Associations of resilience and hope with mental and physical health among firefighters

Trauma symptoms and suicidal ideation in firefighters with consideration of exposure to natural disaster.

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About