The mental health impact of volunteering in a disaster setting: a review.
This article reviews the literature on mental health of volunteers after working in disasters. When mobilized they often are a community's major source for rescue and recovery. PsychINFO, PubMED, and Web of Science were searched for relevant articles published until October 2009. Of 448 articles screened, only 9 articles fulfilled our inclusion criteria. They examined the aftermath of earthquakes (4 articles), terrorist bombings (1), explosions (1), aviation disasters (1), tsunami (1), and a bus accident (1).Findings showed that, compared with professional workers, volunteers tend to have higher complaint levels. The following factors were found to contribute to mental health complaints of volunteers: Identification with victims as a friend, severity of exposure to gruesome events during disaster work, anxiety sensitivity, and lack of postdisaster social support. The review reveals the need for more research regarding predictors of stress in volunteers.
Thormar
Sigridur Bjork
SB
Department of Psychiatry, Center for Psychological Trauma, Academic Medical Center, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. s.b.thormar@amc.uva.nl
Gersons
Berthold Paul Rudolf
BP
Juen
Barbara
B
Marschang
Adelheid
A
Djakababa
Maria Nelden
MN
Olff
Miranda
M
D000060:Accidents, Aviation / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D000063:Accidents, Traffic / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D004190:Disasters / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D055866:Earthquakes / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005107:Explosions / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D008016:Life Change Events; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology; D018986:Motor Vehicles / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D018635:Rescue Work / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology; D023481:Terrorism / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D057192:Tsunamis / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D014838:Volunteers / Q000523:psychology*