Secondary Traumatic Stress: Pervasiveness and Contributing Factors in School Personnel

Abstract

The study aim is to identify pervasiveness and factors leading to secondary traumatic stress (STS) in school personnel to increase awareness of the need for support and help for school personnel who are affected by STS. School personnel is defined in this study as all personnel employed by schools and includes, teachers, administrators, staff, resource officers, custodians, lunch aids, bus drivers, nurses, social workers, etc. School personnel work together to support students and ensure that they learn not only educational material, but also social and emotional skills. They also provide a sense of safety for students. School personnel are tasked with providing seven hours of daily support to their students; however, lack of supports, constant stressors, and exposure to secondhand accounts of trauma, put school personnel at risk for STS. This dissertation includes a review of STS in school personnel, theory used to inform and understand STS, a systematic review of STS in school personnel, a cross-sectional study of STS in school personnel from a Midwestern County, and integration of findings including practical implications and need for future research.