Abstract
ABSTRACTThe culture and values of the National Health Service and the staff that work within it have received much attention over recent years. The erosion of empathy and compassionate care toward service users has been highlighted. Psychological formulation may be one way that clinicians can understand their service users more fully, which could lead to an improvement in the empathy they express toward them. The current study investigates the effect of presenting client information in a psychological formulation on self-reported empathy in staff in medium and low secure forensic mental health services. One hundred and fifty-four staff were recruited via convenience sampling to complete self-report questionnaires measuring burnout (Maslach Burnout Inventory), state (Adapted Interpersonal Reactivity Index), and trait (Empathy Quotient) empathy. No significant difference in state empathy scores was observed among the staff in the formulated group when compared with the unformulated group. Linear multiple stepwise regressions demonstrated that trait empathy and burnout significantly predicted variance in state empathy, but the information format was not significant. It was concluded that mode of presentation in this instance did not influence the degree of empathic concern staff expressed toward a hypothetical client in a vignette. General levels of empathy and degree of burnout superseded this effect. Further research is needed on how adjusting client information formats might enhance empathy among professionals.
Highlights
The culture within the UK National Health Service (NHS) has come under increasing scrutiny following the exposure of failings within a series of hospital trusts (e.g., Mid Staffordshire and Southern Health)
Chi-squared analysis demonstrated no significant differences between the groups; these variables were not entered as predictors in the regressions
This research addressed a gap in the empirical literature by investigating whether the mode of presentation of client information affected the level of state empathic response from staff in a forensic service, toward a hypothetical service user presented in a vignette
Summary
The culture within the UK National Health Service (NHS) has come under increasing scrutiny following the exposure of failings within a series of hospital trusts (e.g., Mid Staffordshire and Southern Health). In a longitudinal study with first-year nursing students, Ward, Cody, Schaal, and Hojat (2012) found a significant decline in empathy for participants who had a greater exposure to client interaction These findings were mirrored in studies conducted with third-year medical students (Bellini & Shea, 2005; Hojat et al, 2009). Sandhu, Rose, Rosthill-Brookes, and Thrift (2012) discussed the specific challenges staff face when working with service users who had committed sexual or sexually related offenses Within this context, their qualitative study found that staff reported difficulties in empathizing with this population. Despite the challenges staff face, Polson and McCullom (1995) highlight the importance of empathy within a forensic mental health setting They discuss the positive effects of therapists’ empathy toward a service user on the service users’ subsequent ability to empathize with themselves and their victims. This highlights the clinical relevance of investigating mechanisms for increasing and facilitating empathy within staff
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callMore From: Journal of Forensic Psychology Research and Practice
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
