Vicarious trauma among forensic psychologists

Mental health professionals who conduct forensic assessments are often exposed to stressors during evaluations of justice-involved individuals (e.g., graphic descriptions of violence, crime scene photos), yet little research has examined vicarious trauma among forensic mental health evaluators. Vicarious trauma refers to the emotional and psychological impact experienced by individuals who are indirectly exposed to traumatic events. This study used a self-report survey to examine how various protective and risk factors impact the prevalence of vicarious trauma among forensic psychologists (N = 82). Results revealed that perceived social support, trait empathy, the total number of evaluations conducted, and substance use as a coping skill were not significantly related to forensic psychologists' experience of vicarious trauma. Although results were not statistically significant, this study's methodology contributes to the existing literature by exploring how vicarious trauma may manifest differently in forensic psychologists when compared to other "helping professions," and it provides suggestions for future research to more accurately capture the construct of vicarious trauma. Future research should seek to improve existing operationalizations of vicarious trauma and explore it'sprevalence among other types of forensic mental health evaluators.