Impact of a car rampage and adverse childhood experiences on the mental health of police officers

Introduction

Mental disorders are an occupational risk for emergency service personnel. The aim of this study is to examine the mental health progress of police officers over the course of one year following an intentional vehicular assault (IVA), in order to improve pre- and post-incident interventions. The hypothesis is that police officers who were deployed will develop more post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) and generalized anxiety than their non-deployed counterparts. It is also assumed that adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) exacerbate these symptoms.

Methods

The study included N = 100 police officers, 54 of them were deployed to the IVA and n = 46 from the same units were not. Validated questionnaires were used to measure generalized anxiety (GAD-7) and PTSS (PCL-5) six and twelve month after the IVA.

Results

Six months after IVA, the burden of PTSS [t(98)=1.73, p=.043] and arousal [t(98)=1.90, p=.030] was significantly higher in the deployed group. ACEs and participation in a psychological crisis intervention explained a large part of the variance (R²=.323, F(7, 92)=6.28; p<.001). Over the course of one year, rmANOVAs revealed a main effect in the reduction of negative cognitions (R²=.11, F(1, 57)=6.9, p=.011) and PTSS (total score: R²=.09, F(1, 58)=5.8, p=.019). Contrary to our hypothesis, we found an interaction effect between time and group, with generalized anxiety symptoms decreasing in the deployed group after one year (R²=.09, F(1, 58)=2.6, p=.023).

Discussion

ACEs and crisis intervention appear to have an important and opposing influence on the development of PTSS in deployed police officers. However, the overall burden is rather low. The results of this and other studies from the same project have already been incorporated into the new concept for psychological crisis intervention in the German Armed Forces.

Key messages

• Adverse childhood experiences represent a high-risk factor for mental health problems following critical incidents.

• Participation in contemporary crisis intervention measures reduces the risk of psychological impairment after critical incidents.