Abstract
Professionals who work with victims and trauma survivors are continually confronted with the destruction, horror, and losses their clients have experienced and are therefore susceptible to vicarious trauma (as a result of their empathetic engagement with and cumulative exposure to traumas related by patients) and post-traumatic growth (as a multidimensional process that leads to both changes in beliefs, objectives, behaviors, and identity as a consequence to trauma exposure). Although psychologists have long been aware of these two phenomena, they remain under-researched. The present study examined whether professionals who work with trauma survivors are impacted by vicarious trauma and whether they experience post-traumatic growth. We also looked for possible correlations between the two phenomena. Analyses of responses to the ProQOL (vicarious trauma) and PTGI (post-traumatic growth) questionnaires provided by 163 professionals (mostly legal practitioners and psychologists) within a French nationwide victim-support organization showed that they experience both vicarious trauma and post-traumatic growth and that these two phenomena are closely linked. Further research is now needed to confirm and more clearly define these links. Results also showed that profession, professional experience, and specialized training moderate vicarious trauma and post-traumatic growth. These variables must be taken into account when evaluating the two phenomena and when providing support to professionals but also in conception and implementation of training programs and supervision settings.
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Data availability
The datasets generated during and/or analysed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.
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We would like to thank all the members and professionals of the France Victimes association, those who agreed to be spokespersons for the dissemination of this project and those who agreed to take part in the study and who took the time to answer our questionnaire.
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KB was involved in the conceptualization of the study, carried out the data collection and contributed to the analysis of the results. SDB was involved in the conceptualization of the study, the data analysis and the writing of the article. CG supervised the implementation of the project, its theoretical and methodological conceptualization and contributed to the data analyses, the writing and the drafting of the article.
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Barre, K., De Boer, S. & Guarnaccia, C. Vicarious trauma and posttraumatic growth among victim support professionals. Curr Psychol 43, 3056–3069 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-023-04523-2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-023-04523-2