Psychological predictors of posttraumatic stress and depression in firefighters: A 2-year longitudinal study

Background and objectives

Due to high trauma exposure in their job, first responders have an increased chance to develop posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression. A challenge in the psychotrauma field is to develop effective preventive strategies for high-risk professionals. The aim of this study was to test which malleable psychological factors (resilience, social support at work, experiential avoidance, repetitive negative thinking (RNT), meaning in life, sense of coherence) predict the development of PTSD and depression symptoms in firefighters.

Method

Firefighters (n = 393) were tested at baseline (PTSD, depression and risk factors) and filled out questionnaires in the following 2 years (PTSD and depression). Regression analyses were run testing which set of risk factors best predicted PTSD or depression symptoms at follow-up, when controlling for baseline symptomatology.

Results

Lower social support at work and higher experiential avoidance predicted PTSD symptom development, and lower meaning in life and higher RNT predicted depression symptom development.

Conclusions

Decreasing experiential avoidance and RNT and promoting social support at work and meaning in life seem promising targets for primary prevention interventions in first responders. Future studies should test whether targeting these risk factors would indeed decrease the development of post-trauma psychopathology in high-risk professionals.