Risk and resilience factors for burnout and secondary traumatic stress among police officers and psychometric properties of the professional quality of life

Abstract

First responders are routinely exposed to traumatic incidents and occupational stressors, placing them at increased risk of burnout and other adverse wellbeing outcomes. Understanding the factors that promote resilience and accurately assessing professional quality of life within these populations are important priorities for research and practice. This thesis explores these issues through two complementary studies. The first study examines the relationship between social support and burnout among first responders, while the second investigates the measurement and predictors of professional quality of life in a sample of police officers. Findings highlight the importance of social, organisational, and psychological factors in shaping wellbeing among emergency service personnel and support the need for population-specific approaches to assessment. Collectively, this work contributes to understanding the factors associated with resilience and wellbeing in first responders and has implications for organisational policy, psychological support, and future research.

Date of Award	Dec 2026
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	Queen's University Belfast
Supervisor	Donncha Hanna (Supervisor), Martin Robinson (Supervisor) & Larissa Coulter (Supervisor)