title: Association between resiliency and posttraumatic growth in firefighters: the role of stress appraisal.
abstract: The purpose of this study was to establish the relation between resiliency and the level of positive changes, comprising posttraumatic growth in a group of firefighters experiencing job-related traumatic events and the mediating role of stress appraisal in this relation. The study was performed on a group of 100 firefighters from firefighting and rescue brigades, out of which 75 admitted to experiencing a traumatic event. Firefighters covered by the study were on average 31.51 years old (SD = 6.34). A Polish version of Posttraumatic Growth Inventory, the Resiliency Assessment Scale and Stress Appraisal Questionnaire were used in the study. The results have shown that 22.7% of firefighters displayed low, 58.6% average and 18.7% high intensity of positive changes resulting from a traumatic event. Resiliency poorly correlates with posttraumatic growth expressed in changes in self-perception, and strongly correlates with stress appraisal, negatively correlates with threat and harm/loss and positively correlates with challenge. Appraisal of stress as a threat and challenge appeared to be mediators of the relationship between resiliency and posttraumatic growth.
authors.affiliation: a Institute of Psychology, University of Łódź , Poland.
authors.forename: Nina
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Ogińska-Bulik
authors.affiliation: a Institute of Psychology, University of Łódź , Poland.
authors.forename: Magdalena
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kobylarczyk
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D061388:Firefighters / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009784:Occupational Diseases / Q000523:psychology*; D016272:Occupational Health; D011044:Poland / Q000453:epidemiology; D055500:Resilience, Psychological; D012649:Self Concept; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000523:psychology*
keywords: firefighters; positive changes; posttraumatic growth; resiliency; trauma