Search

Večina ljudi je v življenju doživela stresen dogodek, pa naj bo to prometna ali letalska nesreča, nasilni zločin, teroristični napad, globalna pandemija ali naravna nesreča. Kadar dogodek ali niz dogodkov povzroči veliko stresa, se imenuje travmatični dogodek. Travmatične dogodke zaznamuje občutek groze, nemoči, jeze, zmedenost ali strahu. Travmatični dogodki prizadenejo preživele, reševalce ter prijatelje in sorodnike žrtev, ki so bili vpleteni. Prav tako lahko vplivajo tudi na ljudi, ki so dogodek videli iz prve roke ali na televiziji. Posttravmatska stresna motnja je psihiatrično stanje, ki ga neposredno povzroči travmatični dogodek. V zadnjih letih je postalo jasno, da se le pri delu tistih, ki so bili izpostavljeni travmatičnim dogodkom, naknadno razvije posttravmatska stresna motnja. Posttravmatska stresna motnja je vse bolj prepoznavno in potencialno preprečljivo stanje. Nekateri dejavniki, zlasti resnost travme, zaznano pomanjkanje socialne podpore in peritravmatska disociacija so povezani z razvojem posttravmatske stresne motnje. V zadnjih letih se je pojavila močnejša baza dokazov o obvladovanju težav posameznikov, vpletenih v travmatične dogodke. V magistrski nalogi smo na temeljih teorije predvsem želeli ugotoviti, ali obstaja možnost za razvoj posttravmatske stresne motnje pri zaposlenih na področju vzdrževanja, ki so vsakodnevno pri svojem delu izpostavljeni travmatičnim dogodkom. Izvedena je bila anketa, ki smo jo analizirali in ugotovili pomembne podatke, ki lahko vplivajo na nadaljnje delo pri preprečevanju posttravmatske stresne motnje pri zaposlenih na področju vzdrževanja. Most people have experienced a stressful event in their lives, be it a car or plane accident, a violent crime, a terrorist attack, a global pandemic or a natural disaster. When an event or series of events causes a lot of stress, it is called a traumatic event. Traumatic events are marked by feelings of horror, helplessness, anger, confusion, or fear. Traumatic events affect survivors, rescuers, and friends and relatives of the victims involved. They can also affect people who have seen the event first hand or on television. Post-traumatic stress disorder is a psychiatric condition that is directly caused by a traumatic event. In recent years, it has become clear that only a fraction of those have been exposed to traumatic events and subsequently develop post-traumatic stress disorder. Post-traumatic stress disorder is an increasingly recognizable and potentially preventable condition. Some factors, particularly the severity of trauma, perceived lack of social support, and peritraumatic dissociation are associated with the development of posttraumatic stress disorder. In recent years, a stronger base of evidence has emerged on the coping of individuals involved in traumatic events. In the master's thesis, based on the theory, we primarily wanted to determine whether there is a possibility of developing post-traumatic stress disorder in maintenance employees who are exposed to traumatic events in their daily work. A survey was conducted, which we subsequently analyzed and came up with some important data that may influence further work to prevent post-traumatic stress disorder in maintenance employees.

Background Although numerous studies on occupational post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) have been conducted prior to the 1950–2010 seminal systematic review by Skogstad et al., the prevalence, risk factors, and impact of this disorder following traumatic events in occupational settings remain unclear. This study aims to address this knowledge gap by reviewing the literature published after 2010. Methods We reviewed literature from databases such as PubMed and Google Scholar using PRISMA guidelines to identify studies that address occupational PTSD and examined the status (prevalence or incidence), the risk factors, and the health effects of PTSD among workers. Results In total, 123 articles were identified, and finally, 31 (25.2%) articles were selected after excluding duplicates. Various occupational traumatic physical events were reported such as natural or manmade disaster, explosion, accident, handling refugee corpses, or bullying at work. Risk of PTSD was closely associated with working conditions, severity of injury, history of mental disorder, occurrence of psychiatric symptoms at the time of the event, personality, interpersonal relationships, etc. Workers with PTSD were likely to experience a deterioration of physical and psychological health and impairment of social and occupational functioning. Conclusions Our review suggests that many workers remain highly vulnerable to occupational PTSD and its consequences.

Various psychological trauma management programs (PTMPs) are offered to assist employees who have been exposed to a traumatic event in the workplace. There is, however, limited literature available on how employees in high-risk occupations experience these programs. This study qualitatively explored the experiences of PTMPs from the perspective of employees working in three high-risk occupations. The purpose of this study was to explore the experiences of the participants in order to compile a framework that could help support and improve the productivity and wellbeing of employees affected by work-related trauma. The study used a qualitative research design based on an approach informed by interpretivism and social constructivism. A multiple-case study was used as research strategy to incorporate three sectors in South Africa, namely mining, policing, and emergency medical services. Data were gathered through semi-structured interviews and focus groups, and analyzed using thematic analysis. The findings across the three sectors showed effective strategies considered by participants to manage psychological trauma. These strategies include multiple counseling sessions, face-to-face counseling, regaining control, and receiving support. Strategies that were viewed as ineffective include inability of counselors to relate to the participants’ work environments, lack of involvement, lack of supervisor support, unavailability of counseling and specialized skills, premature resuming of duties, and a single-dimension approach. Based on the findings, an intervention framework is proposed to address psychological trauma in high-risk occupations.

Although the death of a child client is among the worst work-related events that a child welfare worker can experience, the phenomenon is tremendously understudied concerning how the event impacts the staff involved and how, or if, their employing agencies supported any mental health needs that may have arisen after the death. This study investigates what types of mental health/emotional support was made available to Northeastern Ontario child welfare workers following the death of a child client, and how effective that support was in helping the worker cope with any difficulties related to the death. This study was guided by principles of Constructivist Grounded Theory and semi-structured qualitative telephone interviews were conducted with five (5) participants. My analysis found that the death of a child client can negatively impact both the mental wellbeing of involved workers as well as the organizational climate of an agency. My analysis also found that workers may delay the emotions associated with the grieving process to effectively focus on the administrative requirements resulting from the child’s death, potentially to their detriment. The different ways child welfare organizations supported staff through these events included individual and group psychological debriefings, grief counselling, and providing information regarding additional support options. Only three of the five workers engaged in the strategies provided to them by their agency, and of those three, only one found the services to be helpful with managing emotional difficulties related to the child’s death. What remained true among all five participants was that they each had very personalized ideas as to what they felt would have best helped them through this difficult event. I conclude that based on related literature and the findings of this study, child welfare organizations are recommended to invest in a thorough and embedded agency framework of trauma-management that addresses policy and procedure development as well as support coordination at the pre-trauma, immediate trauma, and post-trauma levels. Additionally, trauma-management should not be a singular standardized response and should be tailored to the individualized needs of each worker. Agencies should be well-versed in delivering different strategies of trauma-management and letting the worker lead in determining what type of support they are looking for and when would be best to receive it. Thesis Master of Social Work (MSW)

MCom (Industrial Psychology), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2017 Employees in the mining industry experience various forms of psychological trauma (PT) at their workplace. They are directly and indirectly exposed to PT such as accidents, retrenchments and strikes. These events sometimes lead to PT if it is not managed properly. Therefore it is important that every mine in the industry has a well-developed psychological trauma management programme (PTMP) available to their employees and that they are aware of and informed of these programmes. If the mining industry does not give sufficient attention to PT and PTMPs, it is evident that this could negatively influence employees’ work performance and they could experience this stress and trauma to the extent that they are not able to cope anymore, which could have serious consequences such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). In order for employees in the mining industry to function optimally and to avoid further accidents, it is very important that the mining industry regards this study as an informative tool. The general objective of the study was exploring the experience of PT and the management thereof in the mining industry. The researcher utilised a qualitative research approach in order to gain an in-depth understanding into the population’s experience. The sample consisted of nine employees of the different mines from which all were permanently employed at the mine and have been working at the mine for at least one year or more. Participants’ job descriptions varied from HR managers, safety officers, machine operators, training officers and plant coordinators. The researcher conducted semi-structured interviews in order to understand the participants’ perspectives on this phenomenon and their responses were transcribed in a verbatim manner. A data analysis was then conducted in order to gain themes and subthemes, which was then reported on. From the findings it was evident that the employees at the mines and in the mining industry as a whole, experience trauma as a difficult event due to sudden and unexpected events such as serious accidents or any life-threatening events that can either happen to them directly or indirectly to a fellow colleague. These employees indicated that they are partially aware of PTMPs such as doctors and psychologists, external wellness centres and the Employee Assistance Programme (EAP), as well as the freedom to speak to the HR Department. The majority of participants indicated that these PTMPs are ineffective mainly due to access, awareness, availability and support from supervisors and managers. They suggested on-site help that is readily available when they need help and assistance, better communication, information and creating awareness. They also preferred face-to-face counselling and help, which external wellness centres and the current EAP are not providing to them at this stage. In summary, from the findings it was apparent that the South African mining industry should invest and focus on well-developed PTMPs specifically targeted at the needs of the employees in this industry and the PT events that they experience. An effective PTMP should include immediate or on-site help and assistance, access to these PTMPs and support and encouragement to take part in the available PTMPs. It is important that all counselling sessions are handled in confidentiality and that the mines inform, communicates and make them aware of the available PTMPs and how to gain access. They also emphasised the importance of the mine catering for their specific language and culture needs when implementing a PTMP. This study makes a great contribution to the phenomenon of PT and the management thereof, especially in the mining industry, which, at the moment, is a very relevant topic in South Africa. If the mining industry makes work of implementing a well-developed PTMP aimed at the needs of the employees in the mining industry, it could contribute towards their employees’ well-being, which in turn could help reduce strikes and also reduce mining accidents. This study also contributes to existing literature on the topics of PT, PTM and PTMPs in South Africa Masters

MCom (Industrial Psychology), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015 Exposure of employees to traumatic experiences in the workplace is a reality that many organisations face. Although not every person exposed to a traumatic experience will necessarily develop post-traumatic stress, the workplace still has a responsibility to assist individuals to deal with psychological reactions after a traumatic experience. The South African Police Service (SAPS) is one such organisation, where employees run a particularly high risk of being exposed to traumatic experiences while performing their tasks. In order to help employees of the SAPS to debrief their trauma, trauma counsellors are necessary. Within the SAPS, trauma counsellors are trained in an adapted version of Mitchell’s Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM) model, with the underlying focus to establish a sense of safety for the police official. The trauma counsellors in the SAPS are trained by means of an experiential learning experience, where journaling is utilised to capture personal experiences during the training. The objective of the study was therefore to explore the experience of counsellors during a trauma counselling training programme. A qualitative research design was utilised following a phenomenology approach. The social constructivism paradigm was also utilised in this research study. Trauma counsellors (N=12) in the SAPS were used as case study for this research, where a purposive homogeneous non-probability sampling technique was implemented. The journal entries made by the participants during the nine day training programme were used as a data collection method. Four categories were extracted from the data, namely, thoughts regarding trauma counsellor’s experiences, emotion experiences of counsellors, the impact of daily experiences on counsellors and the participants’ view on how their competence of efficiency would change in the future. The results showed that the training programme was an effective strategy to train the counsellors. The counsellors showed increased self-awareness and self-insight after the training. The participants gained insight and understanding of how police officials experience trauma. The findings showed that the participants felt empowered and more confident to assist police officials with their trauma recovery. In relation to their training, counsellors made recommendations for the future training of trauma counsellors within the SAPS. Finally, recommendations were made for future research as well as the implications of the study for the industrial psychology practise. Masters

MA (Industrial Psychology), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015 Emergency medical personnel, or paramedics, are daily exposed to dangerous, hazardous and life-threating events. Constantly on a day to day basis, these medical professionals deal with various incidents that can be seen as traumatising events. These traumatic incidents often lead to psychological trauma, and the lack of a well-developed and aimed trauma management programme, may enhance negative working performance and coping within the working environment. Organisations employing paramedics should therefore have a well-established trauma management programme (TMP) available for employees, in order to help them process these daily trauma experiences. If a TMP is lacking within the emergency setting, possible consequences for paramedics include low work performance and productivity, turnover intension, and Post-traumatic stress syndrome (PTSD). Emergency personnel such as paramedics form a vital part in the pre-hospital environment, and it is therefore necessary that organisations take proper care regarding their employees. The general objective entailed exploring psychological trauma, and the experience of a trauma management programme among paramedics. During this study, a qualitative research approach was utilised directed with a case study strategy. The sample consisted of 20 paramedics from which all were qualified and permanently employed for more than two months. The paramedics were classified as Advanced Life Support (ALS), Intermediate Life Support (ILS) and Basic Life Support (BLS). All of the participants resided in the Gauteng province, from different organisations and branches. Semi-structured interviews were conducted in order to investigate in-depth the paramedic’s perspective regarding this phenomenon. The responses from participants were transcribed verbatim, and analysed in order to report on the findings. It was established from the findings that paramedics experience trauma as an event that negatively affected their lives. These events were mainly due to abnormal scenes they were exposed to such as witnessing premature death, deceased people, suicide, deaths and injuries related to motor vehicle accidents and accidents in general. Paramedics indicated that TMPs are available in some cases within their working environment. These TMPs mainly consisted of counselling, however most of the participants did not make use of TMPs, when they were available. In other cases, there were no existence of any TMP, and that paramedics indicated that they mostly prefer to utilise their own coping mechanisms. This was strange because the main recommendations made by the paramedics regarding TMPs in the workplace, were the implementation of group debriefings and (face to face) counselling services. In summary, it was therefore noted that organisations should invest in a well-aimed, well-developed TMP, designed for the paramedic field, taking into consideration the South African context. As mentioned by the paramedics, an effective TMP must include on-site face to face counselling, group debriefing sessions, awareness programmes, multiple stressor programmes, efficient job-preparation and regular training, sufficient resources, sufficient leave/rest days, hobbies, and talking/socialising with peers. This study furthermore contributes to the conceptualisation regarding trauma management and psychological trauma, specifically in the emergency services field. This study will also enhance awareness regarding these concept mentioned above, in order to take necessary care of their workforce. Therefore, if paramedic organisations implement an effective TMP, enhancement of well-being in the environment will be evident, and this will ensure an optimal functioning working environment. In addition, this study contributes to the current literature regarding trauma management among paramedics, specifically within the South African environment. Masters

Son yıllarda örgütlerde mobbing uygulamaları artmaktadır. Mobbingin hem çalışanlara, hem de örgüte zarar vermesi önlem alma ihtiyacını ortaya çıkarmıştır. Mobbingle mücadelede en önemli nokta hem mağdur, hem de yöneticiler açısından farkındalığın sağlanmasıdır. Türkiye’de kamu ve özel sektörde mobbing uygulamaları sıkça görülmesine rağmen, örgütlerde yaşanan bu sürecin ne anlama geldiği henüz pek bilinmemektedir. Tüm dünyada, özellikle gelişmiş ülkelerde bu problemleri çözmek için önlemler ve iyileştirici çalışmalar yapılmaktadır. Literatürde bu önlemlerin neler olduğuna ve uygulanabilirliğine ilişkin çalışmaların yetersiz olduğu düşünülmektedir. Bu nedenlerle bu çalışmada genel anlamda mobbing yönetiminde her örgüte uyarlanabilecek örgütsel önlemler ele alınmış, ancak bireysel olarak nitelendirilen rehabilitasyon, terapi gibi önlemler üzerinde durulmamıştır., Mobbing practices have recently been increasing in organizations. The damage of mobbing against employees and organizations has created a need for precautions. The most crucial point in struggling with mobbing is to provide the awareness of victims and managers. Although mobbing practices have been frequently seen in public and private sector in Turkey, what this process in organizations means has not been known well yet. In all over the world, especially in developed countries, preventive and improving studies have been applied to solve mobbing problems. The literature about the precautive actions to prevent mobbing and applicability of these precautions are so limited. This study analyzes the preventive actions that can be adopted by any organization for mobbing management, except personnel techniques such as rehabilitation and therapy are not included.