Mark W.G. Bosmans

Victim Satisfaction with Criminal Justice: A Systematic Review

Abstract The authors conducted a systematic review on the topic of victim satisfaction with criminal justice to examine which aspects of the procedure and the legal outcome are associated with victim satisfaction. The systematic review resulted in 22 articles. Factors were conceptualized into (1) variables related to the procedure and (2) variables related to the outcome. The study uncovered covariates of satisfaction in both categories. Findings, however, were ambiguous. The mixed findings suggest there is a need to understand both the differences among victims and when certain facets are more important in influencing satisfaction with the judicial process.

Longitudinal interplay between posttraumatic stress symptoms and coping self-efficacy: A four-wave prospective study

Trauma-related coping self-efficacy (CSE), the perceived capability to manage ones personal functioning and the myriad environmental demands of the aftermath of potentially traumatic events (PTE), has been shown to affect psychological outcomes after these events. Aim of the present four-wave study was to examine the cross-lagged relationships between CSE and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms following PTEs in order to examine direction of influence. Levels of CSE and PTSD symptoms were measured with 4-month intervals. In addition, prospectively assessed personality traits and general self-efficacy perceptions as well as peritraumatic distress were entered in the analyses. The study sample consists of adult respondents of a representative internet panel who experienced PTE in the six months before T1, and did not experience any new PTE or life event between T1 and T3 (N = 400). Respondents were administered the coping self-efficacy scale (CSE-7), impact of event scale (IES) and arousal items of IES-R at each wave (T1 through T3), as well as questions on peritraumatic stress and prospectively measured personality traits (T0). Results of structural equation modeling showed that the effect of CSE on subsequent PTSD symptom levels was dominant. CSE significantly predicted subsequent symptoms, over and above earlier symptom levels, with higher CSE associated with lower PTSD. Symptoms in turn, did not predict subsequent levels of CSE. Higher peritraumatic distress was associated with both higher initial PTSD symptoms and lower initial CSE levels. Higher levels of the personality traits of emotional stability and agreeableness were associated with higher initial CSE levels. This supports a model in which CSE perceptions play an important role in recovery from trauma.

Social organizational stressors and post-disaster mental health disturbances: A longitudinal study

Social organizational stressors are well-known predictors of mental health disturbances (MHD). However, to what extent these stressors predict post-disaster MHD among employed victims hardly received scientific attention and is clearly understudied. For this purpose we examined to what extent these stressors independently predict MHD 1.5 years post-disaster over and above well-known risk factors such as disaster exposure, initial MHD and lack of general social support, life-events in the past 12 months and demographics (N=423). Exposure, social organizational stressors and support were significantly associated with almost all examined mental health disturbances on a bi-variate level. Multivariate logistic regression analyses showed that these stressors, i.e. problems with colleagues, independently predicted anxiety (Adj. OR=5.93), depression (Adj. OR=4.21), hostility (Adj. OR=2.85) and having two or more mental health disturbances (Adj. OR=3.39) in contrast to disaster exposure. Disaster exposure independently predicted symptoms of PTSD symptoms (Adj. OR=2.47) and agoraphobia (Adj. OR=2.15) in contrast to social organizational stressors. Importantly, levels of disaster exposure were not associated nor correlated with (levels of) social organizational stressors. Findings suggest that post-disaster mental health care programs aimed at employed affected residents, should target social organizational stressors besides disaster-related stressors and lack of general social support.

The burden of research on trauma for respondents: a prospective and comparative study on respondents evaluations and predictors.

The possible burden of participating in trauma research is an important topic for Ethical Committees (ECs), Review Boards (RBs) and researchers. However, to what extent research on trauma is more burdensome than non-trauma research is unknown. Little is known about which factors explain respondents evaluations on the burden: to what extent are they trauma-related or dependent on other factors such as personality and how respondents evaluate research in general? Data of a large probability based multi-wave internet panel, with surveys on politics and values, personality and health in 2009 and 2011, and a survey on trauma in 2012 provided the unique opportunity to address these questions. Results among respondents confronted with these events in the past 2 years (N = 950) showed that questions on trauma were significantly and systematically evaluated as less pleasant (enjoyed less), more difficult, but also stimulated respondents to think about things more than almost all previous non-trauma surveys. Yet, the computed effect sizes indicated that the differences were (very) small and often meaningless. No differences were found between users and non-users of mental services, in contrast to posttraumatic stress symptoms. Evaluations of the burden of previous surveys in 2011 on politics and values, personality and health most strongly, systematically and independently predicted the burden of questions on trauma, and not posttraumatic stress symptoms, event-related coping self-efficacy and personality factors. For instance, multiple linear regression analyses showed that 30% of the variance of how (un)pleasant questions on trauma and life-events were evaluated, was explained by how (un)pleasant the 3 surveys in 2011 were evaluated, in contrast to posttraumatic stress symptoms (not significant) and coping self-efficacy (5%). Findings question why ECs, RBs and researchers should be more critical of the possible burden of trauma research than of the possible burden of other non-trauma research.

Assessing Perceived Ability to Cope With Trauma

Aim of the present study was to examine the construct validity of the trauma-related coping self-efficacy (CSE) scale. While assessing the psychometric properties of this 20-item scale among four different samples (514 victims of disaster, 1325 bereaved individuals, 512 victims of acute critical incidents, 169 severe burn victims), we found no measurement equivalence across groups. A shortened version was composed using only those items that were applicable to all types of potentially traumatic events (PTEs). In contrast to the CSE-20, the CSE-7 has a robust factor structure; factor structure and factor loadings were similar across study samples, indicating that it measured the same construct across different PTEs. These results offer strong support for cross-event construct validity of the CSE-7. Associations of the CSE-7 with posttraumatic stress symptoms showed the same pattern as with the CSE-20, indicating that the reduction in items did not diminish the scales’ power to predict posttraumatic stress.

Pre-event trajectories of mental health and health-related disabilities, and post-event traumatic stress symptoms and health: A 7-wave population-based study

It is unknown to what extent classes of trajectories of pre-event mental health problems (MHP) and health-related disabilities (HRD), predict post-event traumatic stress symptoms (PTSS), MHP and HRD. Aim of the present 7-wave study was to assess the predictive values using a representative sample of adult Dutch (N=4052) participating in three health-surveys in November-December 2009 (T1), 2010 (T2), 2011 (T3). In total, 2988 out of 4052 also participated in trauma-surveys in April(T4), August(T5) and December(T6) 2012 and a fourth health-survey in November-December 2012 (T7). About 10% (N=314) was confronted with potentially traumatic events (PTE) in the 4 months before T4 or T5. Latent class analyses among 4052 respondents identified four classes of pre-event MHP and HRD. Series of multivariate logistic regression analyses with class membership, peri-traumatic stress, type of event, gender, age and education as predictors, showed that classes with high levels of MHP or HRD, were more at risk for high levels of PTSS at baseline and follow-ups at 4 and 8 months, than classes with low levels of MHP or HRD. These classes were very strong predictors for high levels of post-event MHP and HRD: no differences were found between non-affected and affected respondents with different levels of peri-traumatic stress.

The predictive value of trauma-related coping self-efficacy for posttraumatic stress symptoms: Differences between treatment-seeking and non-treatment-seeking victims.

OBJECTIVE To assess and compare the (independent) predictive value of trauma-related coping self-efficacy (CSE) for posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) among a treatment sample and a comparison group of nontreatment seeking victims. METHOD Both the treatment (N = 54) and comparison group (N = 144) were exposed to potentially traumatic events (PTEs), experienced a heightened level of PTSS (IES > = 19), and were matched on work status and time between PTE and first measurement (T1). Respondents completed both baseline (T1) and follow-up measures (T2) approximately 8 months after T1. RESULTS Multiple regression analyses among the treatment sample showed that neither PTSS at T1 (start of treatment) nor CSE levels at T1 predicted PTSS at T2 among the treatment group. Among the comparison group, higher CSE levels at T1 and younger age were significantly associated with lower PTSS at T2. In both the treatment group and the comparison group PTSS levels were significantly lower at T2 than at T1. As expected, treatment seeking victims have higher PTSS and lower CSE levels than nontreatment seeking victims. CONCLUSIONS Pretreatment CSE did not affect recovery during treatment: higher pretreatment CSE perceptions do not give treated individuals an advantage while CSE is predictive of PTSS among untreated victims.

Predictors of workplace violence among ambulance personnel: a longitudinal study

To examine predictors of repeated confrontations with workplace violence among ambulance personnel, the proportion of exposure to potentially traumatic events that are aggression‐related and to what extent personnel was able to prevent escalations. Although previous research assessed the prevalences among this group, little is known about predictors, to what extent PTEs are WPV‐related and their abilities to prevent escalations.

The Effect of Employment Status in Postdisaster Recovery: A Longitudinal Comparative Study Among Employed and Unemployed Affected Residents: Effect of Employment in Postdisaster Recovery

Abstract Population studies have shown that employed adults are healthier than unemployed adults. In this study, we examined whether this “healthy worker effect” is relevant in postdisaster mental health by examining whether trauma‐exposed employed individuals have lower postdisaster initial mental health problems and/or whether they recover faster than trauma‐exposed unemployed individuals. We compared the course of postevent intrusion and avoidance reactions, anxiety, depression, and sleeping difficulties of employed residents (n = 291) and unemployed residents (n = 269) affected by a fireworks disaster in a residential area of Enschede, The Netherlands. Measurements took place at 2–3 weeks (T1), 18 months (T2), and 4 years (T3) postdisaster. We used linear mixed‐effect models to examine the course of mental health problems. Employment status was relevant, to a degree, in posttrauma recovery; although affected employed residents had significantly lower levels of mental health problems (initially and over time) than the unemployed, ds = 0.41–0.72, the recovery rate was the same for both groups. At T1 (neglecting the DSM 1‐month criterion), T2, and T3, the prevalence of probable posttraumatic stress disorder was 45.4%, 18.9%, and 11%, respectively, among employed individuals, and 70.1%, 32.5%, and 30% among unemployed individuals. We concluded that research into the mental health of disaster victims should take employment status into account. Regarding postdisaster care, unemployed individuals may need special attention; although they may recover at the same rate as employed individuals, they suffer from more severe mental health problems, even years after the disaster.

Potentially Traumatic Events and Job Satisfaction

Objective: The aim of this study was to examine the effects of potentially traumatic events (PTEs), posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS), and coping self-efficacy (CSE) on post-event job satisfaction. Methods: Repeated analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to assess differences in the course of job satisfaction during 1 year between population-based samples of affected and nonaffected workers. Multivariate regression analyses were conducted with pre-event health, job satisfaction and insecurity, and postevent PTSS and CSE as predictors. Results: About 16% of the affected workers had probable PTSD. The course of job satisfaction between affected (n = 123) and nonaffected workers (n = 644) did not differ significantly. PTSS and CSE did not independently predict post-event satisfaction, in contrast to pre-event job satisfaction. Conclusion: Findings suggest that when needed social support is provided, concerns about the negative effects of potentially traumatic events on job satisfaction could be somewhat relaxed.