Coping Styles and Social Support in Emergency Workers: Family as a Resource

Abstract

The nature of the job of people working in emergency situations is such that they may experience high levels of stress. With the term ‘emergency’, we refer to macroscopic events (floods, earthquakes) but also to micro-emergencies, that are more frequent events like accidents and acts of violence. Therefore, the aim of this approach is to help to prevent, or to overcome, the psychic phenomenon that occurs in the victims after a traumatic event that is unexpected and upsetting. In disaster and emergency scenarios, empirical data shows that an effective intervention is able to activate pro-social behaviours, based on social relations and norms; but for emergency workers there are several dangers. The study analyses the relationship between social support and coping in 182 Emergency Service professionals of three professional categories operating in dangerous situations: military, frontier police and firemen. The research confirms the relationship between coping and social support, emphasising the importance of the family source. The results also confirm what has been reported in literature about the prevalence of situational coping for professionals working in emergency situations. In this area, such research may provide a base for developing stress management programs in emergencies and for protecting and reinforcing the wellness of emergency workers, who, in turn, are victims as well.