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The mental health impact of volunteering in a disaster setting: a review.
- Source :
-
The Journal of nervous and mental disease [J Nerv Ment Dis] 2010 Aug; Vol. 198 (8), pp. 529-38. - Publication Year :
- 2010
-
Abstract
- This article reviews the literature on mental health of volunteers after working in disasters. When mobilized they often are a community's major source for rescue and recovery. PsychINFO, PubMED, and Web of Science were searched for relevant articles published until October 2009. Of 448 articles screened, only 9 articles fulfilled our inclusion criteria. They examined the aftermath of earthquakes (4 articles), terrorist bombings (1), explosions (1), aviation disasters (1), tsunami (1), and a bus accident (1).Findings showed that, compared with professional workers, volunteers tend to have higher complaint levels. The following factors were found to contribute to mental health complaints of volunteers: Identification with victims as a friend, severity of exposure to gruesome events during disaster work, anxiety sensitivity, and lack of postdisaster social support. The review reveals the need for more research regarding predictors of stress in volunteers.
- Subjects :
- Accidents, Aviation psychology
Accidents, Aviation statistics & numerical data
Accidents, Traffic psychology
Accidents, Traffic statistics & numerical data
Earthquakes statistics & numerical data
Explosions statistics & numerical data
Humans
Life Change Events
Mental Disorders psychology
Motor Vehicles statistics & numerical data
Rescue Work statistics & numerical data
Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic psychology
Terrorism psychology
Terrorism statistics & numerical data
Tsunamis statistics & numerical data
Disasters statistics & numerical data
Mental Disorders epidemiology
Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic epidemiology
Volunteers psychology
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 1539-736X
- Volume :
- 198
- Issue :
- 8
- Database :
- MEDLINE
- Journal :
- The Journal of nervous and mental disease
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 20699716
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1097/NMD.0b013e3181ea1fa9