Resources to mitigate health impairment among police employees investigating child abuse: a qualitative study exploring the availability of organisational support
Investigating cases of child abuse is a stressful aspect of police work, and the accumulated stress can lead to secondary trauma and burnout if not balanced with sufficient resources. In this study we aimed to explore available resources, including organisational support, among special unit police i...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Taylor & Francis Group
2025-12-01
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| Series: | Cogent Psychology |
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| Online Access: | https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/23311908.2025.2449733 |
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| author | Lea Loncar Ingrid Steen Rostad Ingvild Saksvik-Lehouillier Eva Langvik |
| author_facet | Lea Loncar Ingrid Steen Rostad Ingvild Saksvik-Lehouillier Eva Langvik |
| author_sort | Lea Loncar |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Investigating cases of child abuse is a stressful aspect of police work, and the accumulated stress can lead to secondary trauma and burnout if not balanced with sufficient resources. In this study we aimed to explore available resources, including organisational support, among special unit police investigators working with child abuse in a large police district in Norway. Sixteen interviews were conducted with investigators working solely with cases of child abuse, and a thematic analysis resulted in five themes. The participants primarily relied on support and spontaneous diffusing from their colleagues. Working in teams fostered supportive relationships and knowledge transfer, while high turnover represented a significant obstacle to collegial support. The participants experienced a lack of training in handling child abuse material and requested systematic support procedures initiated by the management as a preventive measure. Family and friends were rarely used as a resource due to concerns about emotional impact and confidentiality regulations. There was a general reluctance to raise concerns about work health impairment and to seek counselling from the occupational health service due to a hardiness culture in the police profession. The results suggest that the organisation should implement training, follow‑up and debriefing initiatives to destigmatise mental health challenges and create a supportive work environment. Organising work in teams is recommended to foster close collegial bonds that can mitigate health risks for child abuse investigators. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-1850bb7d95f249ca9ed9975bdc5adabf |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2331-1908 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-12-01 |
| publisher | Taylor & Francis Group |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Cogent Psychology |
| spelling | doaj-art-1850bb7d95f249ca9ed9975bdc5adabf2025-01-08T13:21:49ZengTaylor & Francis GroupCogent Psychology2331-19082025-12-0112110.1080/23311908.2025.2449733Resources to mitigate health impairment among police employees investigating child abuse: a qualitative study exploring the availability of organisational supportLea Loncar0Ingrid Steen Rostad1Ingvild Saksvik-Lehouillier2Eva Langvik3Department of Psychology, NTNU Norway, Trondheim, NorwayDepartment of Leadership and Organizational Behaviour, BI, Norwegian Business School, Oslo, NorwayDepartment of Psychology, NTNU Norway, Trondheim, NorwayDepartment of Psychology, NTNU Norway, Trondheim, NorwayInvestigating cases of child abuse is a stressful aspect of police work, and the accumulated stress can lead to secondary trauma and burnout if not balanced with sufficient resources. In this study we aimed to explore available resources, including organisational support, among special unit police investigators working with child abuse in a large police district in Norway. Sixteen interviews were conducted with investigators working solely with cases of child abuse, and a thematic analysis resulted in five themes. The participants primarily relied on support and spontaneous diffusing from their colleagues. Working in teams fostered supportive relationships and knowledge transfer, while high turnover represented a significant obstacle to collegial support. The participants experienced a lack of training in handling child abuse material and requested systematic support procedures initiated by the management as a preventive measure. Family and friends were rarely used as a resource due to concerns about emotional impact and confidentiality regulations. There was a general reluctance to raise concerns about work health impairment and to seek counselling from the occupational health service due to a hardiness culture in the police profession. The results suggest that the organisation should implement training, follow‑up and debriefing initiatives to destigmatise mental health challenges and create a supportive work environment. Organising work in teams is recommended to foster close collegial bonds that can mitigate health risks for child abuse investigators.https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/23311908.2025.2449733Police stresschild abuse investigationorganisational supportpeer-debriefingmental health stigma, JD-R-modelWork & Organizational Psychology |
| spellingShingle | Lea Loncar Ingrid Steen Rostad Ingvild Saksvik-Lehouillier Eva Langvik Resources to mitigate health impairment among police employees investigating child abuse: a qualitative study exploring the availability of organisational support Cogent Psychology Police stress child abuse investigation organisational support peer-debriefing mental health stigma, JD-R-model Work & Organizational Psychology |
| title | Resources to mitigate health impairment among police employees investigating child abuse: a qualitative study exploring the availability of organisational support |
| title_full | Resources to mitigate health impairment among police employees investigating child abuse: a qualitative study exploring the availability of organisational support |
| title_fullStr | Resources to mitigate health impairment among police employees investigating child abuse: a qualitative study exploring the availability of organisational support |
| title_full_unstemmed | Resources to mitigate health impairment among police employees investigating child abuse: a qualitative study exploring the availability of organisational support |
| title_short | Resources to mitigate health impairment among police employees investigating child abuse: a qualitative study exploring the availability of organisational support |
| title_sort | resources to mitigate health impairment among police employees investigating child abuse a qualitative study exploring the availability of organisational support |
| topic | Police stress child abuse investigation organisational support peer-debriefing mental health stigma, JD-R-model Work & Organizational Psychology |
| url | https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/23311908.2025.2449733 |
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