Leadership of Mayors and Governors during Crises: A Systematic Review on Tasks and Effectiveness

The aim of this article is to provide a systematic review of peer-reviewed literature on leadership tasks and effectiveness of mayors and governors during drastic collective events. A total of 34 peer-reviewed articles met our criteria. They were analysed using the theoretical framework by Boin on leadership tasks, i.e., sense making, decision making, meaning making, terminating, and learning. Studies ranged from minor incidents like local riots, to the events of 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina. The material turned out to be dominated by Western and American studies.

Post-disaster psychosocial support and quality improvement:A conceptual framework for understanding and improving the quality of psychosocial support programs

This article is original in that it addresses post-disaster psychosocial support programs from a qualityimprovement perspective, not from the traditional viewpoint of mental health services. Based on a combination of renowned quality models, a framework is sketched that offers chances to better understand and optimize the quality of post-disaster psychosocial service delivery. The quality is reflected in the program’s structure, process, and outcome. Moreover, quality can be expressed in scores per criterion (i.e.

Latent classes of posttraumatic stress and growth

Background and Objectives: Potentially traumatic events may lead to different patterns of posttraumatic stress symptoms and posttraumatic growth. The objective of the present study was to identify subgroups with different patterns of posttraumatic reactions, and to determine whether these subgroups differed in terms of personal and social resources and indicators of adjustment. Design: This study used survey data collected 10 months after the 2011 Oslo bombing attack to investigate patterns of reactions among ministerial employees (N = 1970).

Captivated by fear: an evaluation of terrorism detention policy

The possible threat of radicalization among prison inmates has received widespread political and public attention in Europe. Several countries, including the Netherlands, seek to prevent prisoner radicalization by detaining violent extremist offenders together in segregated high-security facilities. However, it is unclear whether or not such policies are based on sound rationale. This study aims to conduct an in-depth evaluation of terrorism detention policy, based on extensive research among policy makers, prison staff, and prisoners in the Netherlands.

Resource loss, self-efficacy, and family support predict posttraumatic stress symptoms: a 3-year study of earthquake survivors

Background and Objectives: Social support and self-efficacy are regarded as coping resources that may facilitate readjustment after traumatic events. The 2009 Cinchona earthquake in Costa Rica serves as an example for such an event to study resources to prevent subsequent severity of posttraumatic stress symptoms. Design: At Time 1 (1–6 months after the earthquake in 2009), N = 200 survivors were interviewed, assessing resource loss, received family support, and posttraumatic stress response.

School-Based Psychological Screening in the Aftermath of a Disaster: Are Parents Satisfied and Do Their Children Access Treatment?

This study investigated parents’ satisfactionwith postdisaster school-based screening and whether satisfactionwas related to follow-through with screening recommendations. From among 1,268 there were 224 children, ages 7–18 years (M = 10.97, SD = 2.44 years) screened for emotional distress 4 months after a flood and 130 parents who completed the screening evaluation. Of the 44 children who showed severe emotional distress, less than 50% of their parents reported concerns and only 29.5% had sought assistance. Following screening, 86.7% of these children completed treatment.

Psychosocial care to affected citizens and communities in case of CBRN incidents: A systematic review

Disasters are associated with a substantial psychosocial burden for affected individuals (including first responders) and communities. Knowledge about how to address these risks and problems is valuable for societies worldwide. Decades of research into post-disaster psychosocial care has resulted in various recommendations and general guidelines. However, as CBRN (chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear) events form a distinctive theme in emergency planning and disaster preparedness, it is important to systematically explore their implications for psychosocial care.

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