The effect of post-incident discussion on psychological wellbeing and memory integrity

Abstract

As a consequence of their work, emergency service personnel, such as fire-fighters, police officers and paramedics are frequently exposed to traumatic events. This can result in an elevated risk of developing Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. To date, studies have indicated that post-trauma early interventions, such as Critical Incident Stress Debriefing, offer no benefit to individuals in terms of recovery from trauma-type symptomatology, and may also have negative effects on an individuals’ memory for the event. The present analogue study aimed to investigate what aspects of currently used debriefing procedures may contribute to the negative effects on psychological adjustment and memory integrity observed in the literature. Specifically, the current study examined the effects of differently-focused discussions (emotion, fact, and non-event related) on psychological adjustment and memory integrity, and investigated whether the outcome of these discussions was influenced by the mode of administration (individual, group discussion format). Participants were 177 undergraduate students who viewed a video of a forensic autopsy. Psychological distress was found to decrease for all participants over time, with no significant differences in symptom recovery between conditions. Those who discussed factual information in a group setting incorporated more misinformation into memory; however, these participants reported the most confidence in the accuracy of their memories. Overall, these results suggest that, irrespective of the model of administration, post-trauma discussions in which emotional reactions or factual information are reviewed do not facilitate psychological adjustment compared to non-event related discussions. Furthermore, this study provides a greater understanding of the specific aspects of debriefing that may account for misinformation effects.