Police investigating child abuse have higher rates of depression and anxiety

Research led by the University of Southampton suggests that police investigating Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) experience higher levels of depression and anxiety than other officers.

But the study, published in Depression and Anxiety, also found that feeling successful and supported at work can act as a powerful buffer to these outcomes.

Coping mechanisms such as positive refocusing, seeking distraction and social support were also effective in improving investigators mental health.

“Our research suggests that the biggest challenge faced by police protecting children from predators is surprisingly not the material they process or contact with victims and perpetrators—it appears to be the amount of support they receive (or not) from their colleagues, bosses, and organisations,” said Dr Paul Conway, a psychologist at the University of Southampton who led the study.

Researchers on the ‘Protecting the Protectors’ project at the University of Southampton, the University of Portsmouth and the International Policing and Public Protection Research Institute at Anglia Ruskin University carried out the largest and most comprehensive study on the mental health of CSAM investigators to date.

They did a detailed survey of 661 CSAM investigators to assess risk and protective factors, moral injury, coping mechanisms and mental health outcomes.

The results suggest 27.7 per cent of CSAM investigators may have depression - a substantially higher rate than experienced by typical police officers (9.8 per cent), even those exposed to recent trauma (17.8 per cent).

Rates of generalised anxiety were also much higher (at 24.2 per cent) amongst CSAM investigators compared to UK police at large (8.5 per cent) and amongst officers with recent trauma (16.4 per cent). Conversely, PTSD rates were in line with other branches of the force at 8.7 per cent—suggesting that PTSD may be less of a problem than depression and anxiety for these officers.

The researchers were particularly interested in how investigating CSAM might lead to moral injury – damage to a person’s moral sense of self, where harm is experienced or observed which violates one’s moral values and where they know the morally right response but are powerless to act.

There are different aspects to moral injury, but the research found feelings of betrayal by colleagues and institutions were the strongest predictor of increased depression, anxiety and PTSD.

This finding was mirrored by the fact that feeling successful and supported was strongly associated with reduced moral injury, depression, anxiety, and PTSD, and increased wellbeing.

Dr Paul Conway said: “A key implication of this is that colleagues and institutions have a large role to play in how investigators manage the stresses and challenges of dealing with CSAM.

“When colleagues and organisations support individuals, things tend to go well, but when they undermine them, things go poorly. This seems to matter more than any other factor we assessed.

“While risk factors like exposure to CSAM predicted increased moral injury, and interactions with victims and perpetrators predicted depression, anxiety, and PTSD, the size of these effects was dwarfed by the powerful positive effect of job success and professional support.”

Researchers also looked at the different strategies investigators used to cope.

Social withdrawal and ignoring the problem predicted worse mental health, while seeking distraction and social support predicted better outcomes.

As expected, self-blame, rumination and catastrophising also predicted worse mental health, while positive refocusing (reframing a situation with a positive mindset) was linked to reduced depression.

Hence, people who are struggling may want to reach out and connect rather than trying to manage the struggle on their own.

Protecting the Protectors: Moral Injury, Coping Styles, and Mental Health of UK Police Officers and Staff Investigating Child Sexual Abuse Material is published in Depression and Anxiety and is available online.

Ends

Contact

Steve Williams, Media Manager, University of Southampton, press@soton.ac.uk or 023 8059 3212.

Notes for editors

1. Protecting the Protectors: Moral Injury, Coping Styles, and Mental Health of UK Police Officers and Staff Investigating Child Sexual Abuse Material is available here: Protecting the Protectors: Moral Injury, Coping Styles, and Mental Health of UK Police Officers and Staff Investigating Child Sexual Abuse Material - Conway - 2024 - Depression and Anxiety - Wiley Online Library
2. For Interviews with Dr Paul Conway please contact Steve Williams, Media Manager, University of Southampton press@soton.ac.uk or 023 8059 3212.

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