Contextual factors related to firefighter resilience.

BACKGROUND

Resilience may protect against the negative consequences of psychologically challenging occupational exposures in firefighters. There is a limited understanding of how firefighter resilience may differ from civilians and contextual factors, which may influence firefighter resilience.

AIMS: Determine differences in resilience between firefighters and civilians and to identify contextual factors affecting firefighter resilience.

METHODS

This cross-sectional examination included career firefighters and civilians not in emergency or care service occupations. Participants completed the Brief Resilience Scale (BRS), a demographics and injury questionnaire. Firefighters additionally completed the Short Grit Scale (Grit-S) and the Professional Quality of Life (ProQOL) questionnaire, which assessed three independent subscales: (i) compassion satisfaction (ProQOL-CS), (ii) compassion fatigue: burnout and (iii) compassion fatigue: secondary traumatic stress. Independent t-tests were used to examine BRS score between-group differences. Backward linear regression analysis identified contextual factors (e.g. rank, ProQOL scores) related to firefighter resilience.

RESULTS

Resilience was greater among firefighters with a moderate effect (P < 0.001, 0.69). Backward linear regressions found ProQOL-CS and Grit-S scores were related to firefighter resilience (R2 = 21%).

CONCLUSIONS

We found that firefighters exhibit greater resilience than civilians, and that ProQOL-CS and grit significantly contribute to firefighter resilience. The meaningfully greater resilience among firefighters suggests that related findings in civilian populations may not be relevant for firefighters. Identification of contextual factors related to firefighter resilience can inform intervention strategies among firefighters. Future prospective studies should examine psychosocial constructs (e.g. resilience) and influential factors (e.g. compassion satisfaction, grit) to better understand biopsychosocial risk factors for firefighter occupational-health consequences.