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Gertler J, Dale L, Tracy N, Dorsett J, Sambuco N, Guastello A, Allen B, Cuffe SP, Mathews CA. Resilient, but for how long? The relationships between temperament, burnout, and mental health in healthcare workers during the Covid-19 pandemic. Front Psychiatry 2023; 14:1163579. [PMID: 37484670 PMCID: PMC10361786 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1163579] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/11/2023] [Accepted: 06/15/2023] [Indexed: 07/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Introduction Dispositional traits of wellbeing and stress-reaction are strong predictors of mood symptoms following stressful life events, and the COVID-19 pandemic introduced many life stressors, especially for healthcare workers. Methods We longitudinally investigated the relationships among positive and negative temperament group status (created according to wellbeing and stress-reaction personality measures), burnout (exhaustion, interpersonal disengagement), COVID concern (e.g., health, money worries), and moral injury (personal acts, others' acts) as predictors of generalized anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress symptoms in 435 healthcare workers. Participants were employees in healthcare settings in North Central Florida who completed online surveys monthly for 8 months starting in October/November 2020. Multidimensional Personality Questionnaire subscale scores for stress-reaction and wellbeing were subjected to K-means cluster analyses that identified two groups of individuals, those with high stress-reaction and low wellbeing (negative temperament) and those with the opposite pattern defined as positive temperament (low stress-reaction and high wellbeing). Repeated measures ANOVAs assessed all time points and ANCOVAs assessed the biggest change at timepoint 2 while controlling for baseline symptoms. Results and Discussion The negative temperament group reported greater mood symptoms, burnout, and COVID concern, than positive temperament participants overall, and negative participants' scores decreased over time while positive participants' scores increased over time. Burnout appeared to most strongly mediate this group-by-time interaction, with the burnout exhaustion scale driving anxiety and depression symptoms. PTSD symptoms were also related to COVID-19 health worry and negative temperament. Overall, results suggest that individuals with higher stress-reactions and more negative outlooks on life were at risk for anxiety, depression, and PTSD early in the COVID-19 pandemic, whereas individuals with positive temperament traits became more exhausted and thus more symptomatic over time. Targeting interventions to reduce mood symptoms in negative temperament individuals and prevent burnout/exhaustion in positive temperament individuals early in an extended crisis may be an efficient and effective approach to reduce the mental health burden on essential workers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joshua Gertler
- UF Center for OCD, Anxiety, and Related Disorders, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, United States
- University of Florida, Evelyn F. and William L. McKnight Brain Institute, Gainesville, Florida, United States
- Department of Clinical and Health Psychology, College of Public Health and Health Professions, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, United States
| | - Lourdes Dale
- Department of Psychiatry, College of Medicine-Jacksonville, University of Florida, Jacksonville, Florida, United States
| | - Natasha Tracy
- UF Center for OCD, Anxiety, and Related Disorders, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, United States
- University of Florida, Evelyn F. and William L. McKnight Brain Institute, Gainesville, Florida, United States
- Department of Psychiatry, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, United States
| | - Joelle Dorsett
- Department of Educational and Psychological Studies, School of Education and Human Development, University of Miami, Miami, Florida, United States
| | - Nicola Sambuco
- Department of Clinical and Health Psychology, College of Public Health and Health Professions, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, United States
| | - Andrea Guastello
- UF Center for OCD, Anxiety, and Related Disorders, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, United States
- University of Florida, Evelyn F. and William L. McKnight Brain Institute, Gainesville, Florida, United States
- Department of Psychiatry, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, United States
| | - Brandon Allen
- Department of Emergency Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, United States
| | - Steven P. Cuffe
- Department of Psychiatry, College of Medicine-Jacksonville, University of Florida, Jacksonville, Florida, United States
| | - Carol A. Mathews
- UF Center for OCD, Anxiety, and Related Disorders, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, United States
- University of Florida, Evelyn F. and William L. McKnight Brain Institute, Gainesville, Florida, United States
- Department of Psychiatry, College of Medicine-Jacksonville, University of Florida, Jacksonville, Florida, United States
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Meyer EC, Coe E, Pennington ML, Cammarata C, Kimbrel NA, Ostiguy W, Leto F, Gulliver SB. The Unified Protocol for Transdiagnostic Treatment of Emotional Disorders Delivered to Firefighters via Videoconferencing: Pilot Outcomes Highlighting Improvements in Alcohol Use Disorder and Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Symptoms. COGNITIVE AND BEHAVIORAL PRACTICE 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cbpra.2022.08.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
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Jakubowski TD, Sitko-Dominik MM. The impact of the traditional male role norms on the posttraumatic stress disorder among Polish male firefighters. PLoS One 2021; 16:e0259025. [PMID: 34705888 PMCID: PMC8550442 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0259025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2021] [Accepted: 10/12/2021] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Background The aim of this study was to explore potential associations between compliance with the traditional male role norms and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms. Methods The study was conducted on 135 male Polish firefighters. The study used the Impact Event Scale-Revised, the Relations/Social Support Scale and the Male Role Norms Scale. Results The study revealed that the firefighters that suffered from probable PTSD (over 34% of all the respondents) seemed to comply with the male role norms more strictly than those without PTSD. The reverse was found to be true for the perceived social support. Social status norms and toughness norms understood as expectations that men should achieve high status by means of successful career, etc., and be tough and resilient at all costs to be perceived as “manly” were found to be positively associated with the development of PTSD, while in the case of perceived social support, a negative association was confirmed. The results might yield important clinical implications—traditional male role norms pertaining to toughness and social status might be associated with the increase in chances of developing PTSD after the exposure to potentially traumatic events. Conclusions Firefighting as a stereotypically masculine occupation may be associated with the reinforcement of stereotypically masculine behaviors, which in turn is associated with a decreased ability to cope with potentially traumatic stimuli and favoring maladaptive behaviors. The results might suggest that addressing the beliefs about masculinity during psychological intervention in the case of PTSD might be beneficial especially among such masculinized groups as firefighters. The main limitations of the study are: participation of those more eager to participate and reveal personal information; the recall and report bias; the relatively small sample size; sociodemographic data omissions; the study group almost exclusively consisting of firefighters from large urban centers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tomasz Daniel Jakubowski
- Faculty of Social Sciences, Institute of Psychology, University of Silesia in Katowice, Katowice, Poland
- * E-mail:
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