Occupational stress and suicidality among firefighters: Examining the buffering role of distress tolerance

Stanley, Ian H.; Boffa, Joseph W.; Smith, Lia J.; Tran, Jana K.; Schmidt, Norman B.; Joiner, Thomas E.; Vujanovic, Anka A.

doi:10.1016/j.psychres.2018.05.058

Cited by 50 publications

(42 citation statements)

References 51 publications

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“…30 , 32 Research even found rates of suicidal ideation and attempts in firefighters to be 46.8% and 15.5%, respectively. 33 , 34 In China, however, there have not been many studies which focused on mental health in firefighters, and the results have not been consistent. Rui et al 35 investigated the mental health of firefighters using the SCL-90 and found that their overall mental health was significantly better than that of local and military populations.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

<p>Factors Influencing the Mental Health of Firefighters in Shantou City, China</p>

Chen

Zhang

Peng

et al. 2020

PRBM

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Background Firefighters are routinely exposed to occupational stress and are therefore vulnerable to psychological problems. Patients and Methods This study assessed the prevalence of mental health symptoms and potential contributing factors in a sample of firefighters in Shantou city, in the Guangdong Province of China. We conducted a cross-sectional survey with 335 firefighters, including 329 male and 6 female firefighters. We used a questionnaire which assessed anxiety and depression, as indicated by the Zung Self-Rating Anxiety Scale (SAS) and Self-Rating Depression Scale (SDS), as well as other mental health symptoms, using the Symptom Checklist-90 (SCL-90). Basic information and potential-related factors were also collected. Results The average age of participants was 27.38 (SD ± 6.11) years. Assessed by the indexed score of different scales, SAS and SDS positive screening rates were 6.86% and 22.68%, respectively. SCL-90 scores indicated that 6.86% of participants had mental health symptoms. Logistic regression analysis showed that educational level, firefighter rank, and birth order were associated with mental health outcomes. Firefighters in Shantou were also shown to have better mental health outcomes than the Chinese military, but worse than the national population of firefighters. Conclusion These findings indicated the mental health of firefighters is not good. It is necessary to explore effective approaches to help preventing and treating mental disorder in firefighters.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

<p>Factors Influencing the Mental Health of Firefighters in Shantou City, China</p>

Chen

Zhang

Peng

et al. 2020

PRBM

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“…Relatedly, body vigilance—attending to internal cues—is exaggerated in individuals with anxiety‐related pathology (Schmidt, Lerew, & Trakowski, ), converging with our findings. Moreover, anxiety sensitivity, the fear of anxiety‐related sensations (Taylor et al, ), is implicated in suicide risk (see I. Stanley et al, for review) and has been found to statistically explain the link between PTSD symptoms and suicide risk within samples of firefighters (Boffa et al, ; Stanley et al, ). Thus, there is conceptual coherence to our empirical finding that merely observing internal sensations related to PTSD might potentiate suicide risk.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms and mindfulness facets in relation to suicide risk among firefighters

et al. 2019

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Objective: Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms are associated with increased suicide risk among firefighters. Few studies have examined modifiable factors, such as mindfulness facets, that might attenuate this association. This study examined the interactive effects of PTSD symptoms and mindfulness facets in relation to suicide risk among firefighters. Method: Overall, 831 career firefighters were assessed for PTSD symptoms, mindfulness facets, and suicide risk via the PTSD Checklist for DSM‐5, Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire, and Suicidal Behaviors Questionnaire—Revised, respectively. Results: Greater PTSD symptoms were associated with more severe suicide risk; however, higher levels of two specific mindfulness facets, acting with awareness and nonjudging of inner experience, attenuated this association. By contrast, higher levels of the observing facet of mindfulness potentiated the association between PTSD symptoms and suicide risk. Conclusions: Suicide prevention initiatives among firefighters, particularly those experiencing trauma‐related sequelae, might benefit from the inclusion of mindfulness‐based practices alongside frontline empirically‐supported approaches.

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“…Especially, a previous study conducted in four countries -Korea, China, Australia, and Germany -reported that occupational stress, such as job strain, organizational injustice, and effort-reward-imbalance was associated with suicidal ideation [47]. Recently, the association between suicidality and occupational stress such as discrimination, inadequate pay, disruption of sleep, and concern about serious injury was reported among firefighters [48]. However, it has not yet been investigated whether occupational stress from a difficult physical environment of workplace is associated with suicidal ideation in workers.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Prevalence and correlates of suicidal ideation in Korean Firefighters: a nationwide study

Park

Kim

Min

et al. 2019

Preprint

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Background: It is generally known that firefighters are at the increased risk of suicide. However, the prevalence or correlates of suicidal ideation in firefighters have not been thoroughly explained to date. The aim of this study was to measure the 1-year prevalence of suicidal ideation in firefighters and to investigate the correlates of recent suicidal ideation among the demographic, occupational and clinical characteristics. Method: A web-based survey was conducted using a self-reported questionnaire. A total of 45,698 Korean firefighters were included for analysis. Prevalence of suicidal ideation in the past year was calculated and its correlates were elucidated using a multivariable logistic regression analysis. Results: The 1-year prevalence of suicidal ideation was 10.66% in Korean firefighters. Recent traumatic experience, high levels of occupational stress from physical work environment and emotional labor, and the officer as a present job were significant correlates of suicidal ideation in the previous year, even after controlling the effect of PTSD and depressive symptoms. With respect to demographic factors, female gender, and divorced/separated/widowed marital status were associated with suicidal ideation in the previous year in firefighters. Conclusions: More firefighters experienced recent suicidal ideation than the general population and there were risk factors related to the role of firefighters in Korea. Intervention and policies that manage these risk factors are necessary for the prevention of suicide in firefighters.

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Occupational stress and suicidality among firefighters: Examining the buffering role of distress tolerance

Cited by 50 publications

References 51 publications

<p>Factors Influencing the Mental Health of Firefighters in Shantou City, China</p>

<p>Factors Influencing the Mental Health of Firefighters in Shantou City, China</p>

Posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms and mindfulness facets in relation to suicide risk among firefighters

Prevalence and correlates of suicidal ideation in Korean Firefighters: a nationwide study

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