Examination of Stress Among Recruit and Incumbent Women Firefighters
Background: Firefighting is risky and impacts the mental and physical health of personnel. While most research focuses on men firefighters, recent work has highlighted mental health concerns among women including depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Social support is a kno...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Elsevier
2024-12-01
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| Series: | Safety and Health at Work |
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| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2093791124000751 |
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| author | Brittany S. Hollerbach Nattinee Jitnarin Maria D.H. Koeppel Michelle Valenti Shawn Beitel Jaclyn M. Goodrich Jefferey L. Burgess Sara A. Jahnke |
| author_facet | Brittany S. Hollerbach Nattinee Jitnarin Maria D.H. Koeppel Michelle Valenti Shawn Beitel Jaclyn M. Goodrich Jefferey L. Burgess Sara A. Jahnke |
| author_sort | Brittany S. Hollerbach |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Background: Firefighting is risky and impacts the mental and physical health of personnel. While most research focuses on men firefighters, recent work has highlighted mental health concerns among women including depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Social support is a known protective factor for mental health; however, women may be excluded from the supportive peer network of the firehouse. Methods: This cross-sectional study compared the prevalence of perceived stress, peer (functional) support, anxiety, depression, PTSD, chronic work discrimination and harassment, resilience, and job satisfaction in recruit (n=184) and incumbent (n=200) career women firefighters. Results: While depression and perceived stress did not differ between recruits and incumbents, recruits were more likely to score in the range of concern for anxiety (26.1% and 15.5%, respectively). Incumbents were more likely to score at risk for PTSD (16.5% and 10.3%, respectively) and more likely to report sex discrimination, sexual harassment, and sexist behaviors in the workplace. Compared to the low stress group, those who reported moderate or high stress were more likely to score in the range of concern for anxiety (OR=3.86, CI=1.76-8.89) and PTSD (OR=1.30, CI=1.15-1.47), and report poor organizational cohesion (OR=1.13, CI=1.02-1.25). Conclusion: Addressing mental health in the context of women firefighters requires a comprehensive and multi-faceted approach including collaboration between fire departments, mental health professionals, advocacy groups, and the broader community. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-7ffa9af6c4c2426db182296b569e6cc5 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2093-7911 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-12-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Safety and Health at Work |
| spelling | doaj-art-7ffa9af6c4c2426db182296b569e6cc52025-08-20T02:48:58ZengElsevierSafety and Health at Work2093-79112024-12-0115445245710.1016/j.shaw.2024.10.003Examination of Stress Among Recruit and Incumbent Women FirefightersBrittany S. Hollerbach0Nattinee Jitnarin1Maria D.H. Koeppel2Michelle Valenti3Shawn Beitel4Jaclyn M. Goodrich5Jefferey L. Burgess6Sara A. Jahnke7Center for Fire, Rescue & EMS Health Research, NDRI-USA, Inc. 1920 W 143rd Street, Leawood, KS 66224, USA; Corresponding author. Center for Fire, Rescue & EMS Health Research, NDRI-USA, Inc. 1920 W 143rd Street, Leawood, KS 66224, USA.Center for Fire, Rescue & EMS Health Research, NDRI-USA, Inc. 1920 W 143rd Street, Leawood, KS 66224, USACenter for Fire, Rescue & EMS Health Research, NDRI-USA, Inc. 1920 W 143rd Street, Leawood, KS 66224, USAMel & Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health, University of Arizona, 1295 N. Martin Ave., Tucson, AZ 85724, USAMel & Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health, University of Arizona, 1295 N. Martin Ave., Tucson, AZ 85724, USASchool of Public Health, University of Michigan, 1415 Washington Heights, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USAMel & Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health, University of Arizona, 1295 N. Martin Ave., Tucson, AZ 85724, USACenter for Fire, Rescue & EMS Health Research, NDRI-USA, Inc. 1920 W 143rd Street, Leawood, KS 66224, USABackground: Firefighting is risky and impacts the mental and physical health of personnel. While most research focuses on men firefighters, recent work has highlighted mental health concerns among women including depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Social support is a known protective factor for mental health; however, women may be excluded from the supportive peer network of the firehouse. Methods: This cross-sectional study compared the prevalence of perceived stress, peer (functional) support, anxiety, depression, PTSD, chronic work discrimination and harassment, resilience, and job satisfaction in recruit (n=184) and incumbent (n=200) career women firefighters. Results: While depression and perceived stress did not differ between recruits and incumbents, recruits were more likely to score in the range of concern for anxiety (26.1% and 15.5%, respectively). Incumbents were more likely to score at risk for PTSD (16.5% and 10.3%, respectively) and more likely to report sex discrimination, sexual harassment, and sexist behaviors in the workplace. Compared to the low stress group, those who reported moderate or high stress were more likely to score in the range of concern for anxiety (OR=3.86, CI=1.76-8.89) and PTSD (OR=1.30, CI=1.15-1.47), and report poor organizational cohesion (OR=1.13, CI=1.02-1.25). Conclusion: Addressing mental health in the context of women firefighters requires a comprehensive and multi-faceted approach including collaboration between fire departments, mental health professionals, advocacy groups, and the broader community.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2093791124000751firefightersoccupational healthstresswomen |
| spellingShingle | Brittany S. Hollerbach Nattinee Jitnarin Maria D.H. Koeppel Michelle Valenti Shawn Beitel Jaclyn M. Goodrich Jefferey L. Burgess Sara A. Jahnke Examination of Stress Among Recruit and Incumbent Women Firefighters Safety and Health at Work firefighters occupational health stress women |
| title | Examination of Stress Among Recruit and Incumbent Women Firefighters |
| title_full | Examination of Stress Among Recruit and Incumbent Women Firefighters |
| title_fullStr | Examination of Stress Among Recruit and Incumbent Women Firefighters |
| title_full_unstemmed | Examination of Stress Among Recruit and Incumbent Women Firefighters |
| title_short | Examination of Stress Among Recruit and Incumbent Women Firefighters |
| title_sort | examination of stress among recruit and incumbent women firefighters |
| topic | firefighters occupational health stress women |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2093791124000751 |
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