This study examines the cumulative impact of critical incident exposure on the mental health of correctional officers.
Drawing from a longitudinal sample of correctional officers from three prisons in Minnesota, the current study develops and then tests a resiliency-fatigue model by examining the impact of the accumulation of work-related critical incident exposures on symptoms related to posttraumatic stress disorder, depression, and anxiety. As critical incident exposures accumulate, mental health symptoms are found to become more pronounced. The analyses also reveal evidence that mental health symptoms only increase to problematic levels once the accumulation of critical incidents reaches or surpasses an inflection point. The results underscore the importance of understanding the diverse groups affected by prisons and have downstream implications for incarcerated persons, as well as for prison systems more broadly. Despite compelling arguments that prison work influences officer mental health, little attention has been devoted to directly and rigorously assessing this relationship. Even less attention has been attributed to the potential impact of critical incident exposure on mental health outcomes among officers. (Published Abstract Provided)
Downloads
Related Datasets
Similar Publications
- Testing Gender-Differentiated Models of the Mechansms Linking Polyvictimization and Youth Offending Numbing and Callousness Versus Dissociation and Borderline Traits
- Campus Sexual Violence Victimization and Perpetration Experiences in Racial, Gender Identity, and Sexual Orientation Minority Student Subpopulations: A Scoping Review
- Cluster analysis of caregiver and adolescent emotion regulation and its relation to sexual health and dating communication