Aggression Against Emergency Responders: Do Psychological Characteristics of the Employee Matter?

• In Event: Predicting Victimization: Opportunity and Protective Factors

Abstract

Emergency responders (i.e. police officers, fire fighters and ambulance workers) are at high risk of victimization of aggression by the public. Knowledge about correlates of exposure to workplace aggression is imperative to decrease victimization and its consequences. Thus far, the focus of studies has often been on situational correlates, which are rather difficult to change (e.g. working at night). However, notions about the ‘suitable victim’ and victim precipitation suggest that psychological characteristics could also be related to victimization of aggression and these, and related behavior, offer more opportunity for change. Thus, this study focuses on the extent to which psychological characteristics of emergency responders are related to workplace victimization.

Respondents from police, fire, and ambulance departments in the Netherlands filled in three questionnaires (six months apart) about victimization, empathy, negative affectivity, hostile attributions, dominance, core-self-evaluations, aggression, and work characteristics (NT1 = 1200; NT3 = 434). During this presentation, I will present the results of longitudinal analyses (cross lagged panel models), taking missing data into account, which also identify the direction of the relationship between psychological characteristics and victimization over time. Results offer suggestions for interventions and further research to decrease victimization of emergency responders.

Author

• Lisa van Reemst, Erasmus University Rotterdam