‘Getting on with the job’: A systematised literature review of secondary trauma and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in policing within the United Kingdom (UK)

Jim Foley,Alex Hassett,Emma Williams

doi:10.1177/0032258x21990412

Jim Foley, Alex Hassett + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1177/0032258x21990412

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Abstract

The aim of this review is to identify and critically examine existing research relating to secondary trauma and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) within UK police officers. A systematised literature review was conducted which identified 20 studies in police officers from Scotland, England, Wales and Northern Ireland. These studies comprised of terrorist incidents, mass disasters, general policing duties and officers working in rape and child abuse investigations. Key themes emerged regarding understanding the impact of trauma, the influence of police culture and understanding coping mechanisms. It also found a number of methodological limitations within the studies which are likely to have impacted on the results. This review highlighted that trauma in UK policing is still not understood and there is a stigma associated with officers seeking help. Recognising the impact of trauma on police officers and how trauma has affected them is crucial to ensure an effective and compassionate workforce which delivers a better service to the public. It is hoped that this review will address gaps in existing knowledge within the literature, consider implications for practice, as well as recommendations to be taken forward in this crucial area of research.

Highlights

The concept of secondary trauma has been widely studied over the last 30 years and can be considered as exposure to trauma through the first-hand account or narrative of a traumatic event by another (Cieslak et al, 2014; Figley, 1995), and has been described as an occupational hazard of working in a caring profession (McCann and Pearlman, 1990; Nimmo and Huggard, 2013)
Consideration was given to the potential limitations of only using articles relevant to United Kingdom (UK) policing and only articles that were peer reviewed (Griffiths and Norman, 2005; Kennedy, 2007), but in order to gain a detailed and critical understanding of the issue being explored within the UK, only research that was relevant to UK policing which had been critiqued and validated by peers was included within this literature review
The aim of this review was to obtain a detailed understanding of existing literature in relation to secondary trauma and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in police officers within the UK, and critically examine how these findings may impact on those officers performing a number of roles

Summary

Introduction

The concept of secondary trauma has been widely studied over the last 30 years and can be considered as exposure to trauma through the first-hand account or narrative of a traumatic event by another (Cieslak et al, 2014; Figley, 1995), and has been described as an occupational hazard of working in a caring profession (McCann and Pearlman, 1990; Nimmo and Huggard, 2013). The study of police officers who investigate ‘contact’ offences such as those who engage with traumatised victims on a daily basis (especially victims of sexual or child abuse) has yet to be properly explored and understood The impact of this type of work on those who investigate these crimes, often referred to as ‘secondary investigators’ is an important piece of work to undertake as these are considered some of the most stressful and challenging cases to investigate (Bober and Regher, 2006; Carlier et al, 2000; Dane, 2000; Roach et al, 2017, 2018; Skogstad et al, 2013) as well as ‘high risk’ roles within UK policing (College of Policing, 2018; Graham et al, 2020; Hesketh and Tehrani, 2019)

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