Wheeler Chloe, Colloff Melissa, Brzozowski Artur
School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK.
J Psychiatr Ment Health Nurs. 2025 Oct;32(5):1211-1221. doi: 10.1111/jpm.70018. Epub 2025 Aug 2.
Forensic healthcare workers in mental health settings face significant challenges when working with sex offenders. Balancing staff wellbeing with effective offender rehabilitation remains critical.
This study examined how attitudes, perceptions and workplace factors influence the wellbeing of frontline forensic healthcare workers caring for sex offenders.
A cross-sectional design, adhering to the STROBE checklist, was used. Ninety-one participants from UK privatised mental health settings completed an online survey. Wellbeing was assessed using measures of compassion satisfaction, burnout and secondary traumatic stress, with predictors including attitudes, perceptions and workplace factors.
Positive attitudes, such as understanding offender intent, were associated with improved wellbeing, while excessive trust reduced compassion satisfaction. Perceptions like risk awareness acted as psychological buffers. Workplace factors, including environmental safety and quality supervision, enhanced wellbeing, whereas co-worker support unexpectedly reduced compassion satisfaction.
The findings highlight the importance of rational attitudes in enhancing wellbeing. While punitive perceptions offered emotional buffering, fostering balanced approaches is essential for improving therapeutic environments.
The study focused on privatised UK settings, limiting generalisability to NHS contexts. Future research should explore broader populations.
Employers should enhance environmental safety, supervision and training to foster rational attitudes and address peer dynamics.
在心理健康环境中工作的法医医护人员在与性犯罪者打交道时面临重大挑战。在保障员工福祉与有效改造犯罪者之间取得平衡仍然至关重要。
本研究探讨了态度、认知和工作场所因素如何影响照顾性犯罪者的一线法医医护人员的福祉。
采用符合STROBE清单的横断面设计。来自英国私立心理健康机构的91名参与者完成了一项在线调查。使用同情满意度、职业倦怠和继发性创伤压力的测量方法评估福祉，预测因素包括态度、认知和工作场所因素。
积极的态度，如理解犯罪者意图，与福祉改善相关，而过度信任会降低同情满意度。风险意识等认知起到心理缓冲作用。工作场所因素，包括环境安全和质量监督，可提升福祉，而同事支持意外地降低了同情满意度。
研究结果凸显了理性态度对提升福祉的重要性。虽然惩罚性认知提供了情感缓冲，但培养平衡的方法对于改善治疗环境至关重要。
该研究聚焦于英国私立机构，限制了对国民保健服务体系情况的普遍性。未来研究应探索更广泛人群。
雇主应加强环境安全、监督和培训，以培养理性态度并解决同伴关系问题。
