Organizational environment as a catalyst or a buffer for post-traumatic stress An exploration of the moderating effects of organizational stress, organizational support and resilience on the relation between exposure to critical incidents and post-traumatic stress in the Dutch police force.

Abstract

In this research, the relation between exposure to critical incidents and post-traumatic stress was explored with organizational stress, organizational support and resilience as moderators for this relation. The expected catalyst effect of organizational stress on the relation between exposure to critical incidents and post-traumatic stress was not found. Neither was the expected weakening effect of resilience on the relation between exposure to critical incidents and post-traumatic stress. However, organizational stress and resilience did have a direct effect on post-traumatic stress, indicating that both resilience and organizational stress independently influence post-traumatic stress. In this research, no significant relation was found between organizational support and post-traumatic stress. However, organizational support was correlated positively to resilience and negatively to organizational stress, which indicates an indirect positive effect of organizational support on post-traumatic stress. Future research should further explore these relations for causality, since the cross-sectional design of the study does not allow for causal interpretation. Practical recommendations for the Dutch police force are strengthening resilience and organizational support. Adding to that it is recommended to critically look at organizational stressors and remove them where possible.