{"title":"Adaptive performance in refugees after trauma: how relevant are post-traumatic stress and post-traumatic growth?","authors":"Lukasz Stasielowicz","doi":"10.1108/ijwhm-12-2021-0230","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"PurposeWars can lead to massive migration waves, e.g. the Syrian Civil War that began in 2011 led to the European refugee crisis. Discussions about labour integration often accompany huge spikes in asylum applications. Since many refugees experience traumatic events, such as torture, health problems must be considered in the work context. Unfortunately, the relevance of the post-traumatic experiences of refugees to specific job performance facets has mainly been ignored. To close the research gap, a study with refugees living in Germany was conducted to examine to what extent trauma-related variables are relevant to performance variables.Design/methodology/approachThe relationship between post-traumatic stress (PTS), post-traumatic growth (PTG) and adaptive performance (social and task-oriented adaptive performance) was examined as, nowadays, many activities require dealing with changes (e.g. new colleagues, new technologies). Sixty-nine people met the inclusion criteria (e.g. refugee status, traumatic experiences) and completed the survey. Data were analysed using the Bayesian approach.FindingsBayesian analyses revealed that PTG might promote both social and task-oriented adaptive performance. In contrast, PTS was negatively related to task-oriented adaptive performance. Furthermore, there was no substantial evidence that PTG moderates the relationship between PTS and adaptive performance. Furthermore, there is preliminary evidence that refugees do not differ substantially from the general population with respect to social adaptive performance.Originality/valueThe present study demonstrates for the first time the relevance of post-traumatic experiences to the adaptive performance of refugees.","PeriodicalId":45766,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Workplace Health Management","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.4000,"publicationDate":"2022-08-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"1","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"International Journal of Workplace Health Management","FirstCategoryId":"1085","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1108/ijwhm-12-2021-0230","RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":null,"ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q2","JCRName":"PUBLIC, ENVIRONMENTAL & OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 1
Abstract
PurposeWars can lead to massive migration waves, e.g. the Syrian Civil War that began in 2011 led to the European refugee crisis. Discussions about labour integration often accompany huge spikes in asylum applications. Since many refugees experience traumatic events, such as torture, health problems must be considered in the work context. Unfortunately, the relevance of the post-traumatic experiences of refugees to specific job performance facets has mainly been ignored. To close the research gap, a study with refugees living in Germany was conducted to examine to what extent trauma-related variables are relevant to performance variables.Design/methodology/approachThe relationship between post-traumatic stress (PTS), post-traumatic growth (PTG) and adaptive performance (social and task-oriented adaptive performance) was examined as, nowadays, many activities require dealing with changes (e.g. new colleagues, new technologies). Sixty-nine people met the inclusion criteria (e.g. refugee status, traumatic experiences) and completed the survey. Data were analysed using the Bayesian approach.FindingsBayesian analyses revealed that PTG might promote both social and task-oriented adaptive performance. In contrast, PTS was negatively related to task-oriented adaptive performance. Furthermore, there was no substantial evidence that PTG moderates the relationship between PTS and adaptive performance. Furthermore, there is preliminary evidence that refugees do not differ substantially from the general population with respect to social adaptive performance.Originality/valueThe present study demonstrates for the first time the relevance of post-traumatic experiences to the adaptive performance of refugees.
期刊介绍:
Coverage includes, but is not restricted to: ■Best practice examples of successful workplace health solutions ■Promoting compliance with workplace health legislation ■Primary care and primary prevention ■Promoting health in the workplace ■The business case for workplace health promotion ■Workplace health issues and concerns, such as mental health, disability management, violence and the workplace, stress, workplace hazards, risk factor modification and work-life balance ■Workplace Culture ■Workplace policies supporting healthy workplace ■Inducing organizational change ■Occupational health & safety issues ■Educating the employer and employee ■Promoting health outside of the workplace