Compassion Fatigue and Resiliency Factors in Animal Shelter Workers

Levitt, Alexis; Gezinski, Lindsay B.

doi:10.1163/15685306-12341554

Cited by 11 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 13 publications

(39 reference statements)

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“…Many animal carers report working with animals as desirable 6 and find a sense of purpose and achievement in their work. 1,19 These preliminary findings indicate meaning and manageability may heighten job satisfaction.…”

Section: Job Satisfactionmentioning

confidence: 86%

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Resilience in animal care professions: does the stress shield model fit?

Cushing¹

2022

Aust Veterinary J

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Animal care professionals can experience adverse psychological outcomes due to their work, therefore research exploring supporting resilience in this population is needed. This study investigated the capacity of the Stress Shield Model to explain relationships between individual, interpersonal, and organisational factors with outcomes in resilience and adaptive capacity in animal care professionals. Empowerment was hypothesised to mediate these relationships. Australian and New Zealand participants (N = 393) from multiple animal care occupations completed an online survey measuring conscientiousness, coping, team and leader relationships, job demands, organisational resources, growth, resilience, and job satisfaction. Results indicated the Stress Shield Model can partially explain relationships between individual, interpersonal, and organisational factors and resilience and adaptive capacity in animal care professionals, and empowerment partially mediated the effect of organisational resources on growth. Problem-approach coping positively precited resilience and growth; conversely, emotion-avoidant coping negatively precited these outcomes.Conscientiousness positively predicted resilience and negatively predicted job satisfaction.Team relationships positively predicted growth and resilience, while leader-member relationships positively predicted job satisfaction. Organisational resources positively predicted resilience, growth, and job satisfaction, conversely job demands predicted reductions across these outcomes. Findings indicate supporting resilience and adaptive

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Section: Job Satisfactionmentioning

confidence: 86%

“…Many animal carers report working with animals as desirable (Hill et al, 2020) and find a sense of purpose and achievement in their work (Levitt & Gezinski, 2018). Meaning and purpose has also been identified as significant source of satisfaction in veterinarians (Cake et al, 2015).…”

Section: Job Satisfactionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Resilience in animal care professions: does the stress shield model fit?

Cushing¹

2022

Aust Veterinary J

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“…While our sample in the current study is not large enough to perform a gendered analysis, the experiences of participants are reflected in existing research. Other studies have also noted the gendered nature of APW work [ 21 , 47 , 49 ]. In her study of animal shelter workers, Taylor observed that anger and hostility towards individuals who abused, neglected, or surrendered their animals were generally not well masked in interactions with the public, and empathy and compassion were reserved for the animals [ 47 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Trauma in Animal Protection and Welfare Work: The Potential of Trauma-Informed Practice

Stevenson

Morales

2022

Animals

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Those who work in the animal protection and welfare (APW) sector are consistently exposed to human and animal suffering, particularly those who witness animal surrenders and seizures. Continued exposure to suffering can result in stress, anxiety, burnout, and compassion fatigue, which are detrimental to individual and organizational well-being. The aim of this study was to understand the challenges experienced by Canadian APW workers, and to explore how trauma-informed approaches can be implemented to help mitigate these challenges. To achieve this, we utilized purposive sampling to seek workers in the APW sector who had experience with animal surrender and/or seizure. Telephone interviews were conducted with 11 participants. Participants reported experiencing many challenges that negatively impacted their mental health; this article summarizes them by focusing on two key themes drawn from the narratives of the participants: feeling unprepared and forced strength. Trauma-informed practices are explored as a means to prevent compassion fatigue and burnout, and to increase the resilience of individuals and organizations. We suggest trauma-informed practices help APW workers manage job-related stressors while also providing a more compassionate experience for animal guardians. Further, we propose that trauma-informed practices are a crucial component in facilitating respectful relationships with the communities that APW organizations serve.

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“…An intrinsic motivation to help animals, affinity with animals in general, and attachment to shelter animals have been identified as resiliency factors against compassion fatigue among ASWs ( 29 ). ASWs who identified their work as meaningful and felt that it helped them to make a difference in these animals' lives appeared to have protective effects from the negative impacts of stressful situations at work ( 29 ). Study participants also reported social support from animal shelter workers as a resiliency factor and recognized the need for ongoing self-care ( 29 ).…”

Section: Overview Of Occupational Stressors and Protective Factors In Animal Shelter Work (Asw)mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…ASWs who identified their work as meaningful and felt that it helped them to make a difference in these animals' lives appeared to have protective effects from the negative impacts of stressful situations at work ( 29 ). Study participants also reported social support from animal shelter workers as a resiliency factor and recognized the need for ongoing self-care ( 29 ).…”

Section: Overview Of Occupational Stressors and Protective Factors In Animal Shelter Work (Asw)mentioning

confidence: 99%

Social Workers in Animal Shelters: A Strategy Toward Reducing Occupational Stress Among Animal Shelter Workers

2021

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Animal shelter workers (ASWs) are at disproportionate risk of moral injury, secondary trauma, compassion fatigue, and burn-out. While there is an emerging body of literature developing on understanding the nuances of these experiences for ASWs, little work has been done on developing strategies to ameliorate occupational stressors and the negative effects of such for ASWs. Within this paper, occupational risks and protective factors for ASWs are summarized, and the emergence of social work within animal shelter settings as one strategy for helping to ameliorate the occupational stress experienced by ASWs is delineated.

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Compassion Fatigue and Resiliency Factors in Animal Shelter Workers

Cited by 11 publications

References 13 publications

Resilience in animal care professions: does the stress shield model fit?

Resilience in animal care professions: does the stress shield model fit?

Trauma in Animal Protection and Welfare Work: The Potential of Trauma-Informed Practice

Social Workers in Animal Shelters: A Strategy Toward Reducing Occupational Stress Among Animal Shelter Workers

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