Critical incident stress debriefing and its effects on coping strategies and anger in a sample of Australian police officers involved in shooting incidents

This study examined the effects of duty-related stress on police officers. Using a sample of 100 suburban police officers, an anonymous questionnaire requested demographic information and included a measure of duty-related stressors, SCL-90–R, the Posttraumatic Stress Disorder scale of the Impact of Events Scale-Revised, and a locus of control scale. Also assessed was whether Critical Incident Stress Debriefing was experienced. The results showed significant correlations between scores on duty-related stress, somatization, and symptoms of PTSD. 13% of the sample met the DSM-IV (1994) diagnostic criteria for PTSD. Results of the regression analysis showed the best predictors for the diagnosis of PTSD were associated with the factor of Exposure to Death and Life Threat, which corresponds to the DSM-IV AI criteria. Finally, 63% of the respondents stated that a critical incident debriefing would be beneficial following an extremely stressful event related to duty.

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Effect of timing of critical incident stress debriefing (CISD) on posttraumatic symptoms

Journal of Traumatic Stress ◽

10.1023/a:1011117018705 ◽

2001 ◽

Vol 14 (2) ◽

pp. 327-340 ◽

Cited By ~ 53

Author(s):

Kerrianne M. Campfield ◽

Adelma M. Hills

Keyword(s):

Critical Incident ◽

Critical Incident Stress Debriefing ◽

Critical Incident Stress ◽

Posttraumatic Symptoms ◽

Stress Debriefing

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Inner strategies of coping with operational work amongst SAPS officers

SA Journal of Industrial Psychology ◽

10.4102/sajip.v39i2.1151 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 39 (2) ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Masefako A. Gumani ◽

Mattheus E. Fourie ◽

Martin J. Terre Blanche

Keyword(s):

Coping Strategies ◽

Critical Incident ◽

The Body ◽

Traumatic Experiences ◽

Critical Incident Stress Debriefing ◽

Critical Incident Stress ◽

South African Police Service ◽

Managerial Implications ◽

Value Add ◽

The Impact

Orientation: Identification of the inner coping strategies used by South African Police Service (SAPS) officers who do operational work is something the SAPS should consider to ensure the officers’ management of trauma and efficiency at work.Research purpose: The objective of this study was to describe inner coping strategies used by officers in the Vhembe district (South Africa) to reconstruct stressful and traumatic experiences at work.Motivation for the study: Most studies on coping amongst SAPS officers focus on organisational stress and not on the impact of the officers’ operational work.Research design, approach and method: An exploratory design was used and 20 SAPS officers were selected through purposive sampling. In-depth face-to-face and telephone interviews, as well as diaries were used to collect data, which were analysed using content thematic data analysis.Main findings: The results showed that the main categories of coping strategies that led to management of the impact of operational work amongst the selected sample were centred around problem-focused and emotion-focused strategies, with some use of reappraisal and minimal use of avoidance. Considering the context of the officers’ work, the list of dimensions of inner coping strategies amongst SAPS officers should be extended.Practical/managerial implications: Intervention programmes designed for the SAPS, including critical incident stress debriefing, should take the operational officers’ inner strategies into account to improve the management of the impact of their work.Contribution/value-add: This study contributes to the body of knowledge on the inner coping strategies amongst SAPS officers, with special reference to operational work in a specific setting.

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