CONFORMITY TO TRADITIONAL GENDER NORMS BY MALE POLICE OFFICERS EXPOSED TO TRAUMA: IMPLICATIONS FOR CRITICAL INCIDENT STRESS DEBRIEFING

Following exposure to a potential traumatic event, many police officers are encouraged or required to participate in critical incident stress debriefing (CISD). CISD assumes trauma-exposed officers are willing and able to share painful emotions and memories with their peers, and to receive and provide emotional peer support. This study questions the use of CISD for male police officers whose tendency to conform to traditional gender norms appear to discourage these behaviors. It measures trauma exposure, conformity to traditional gender norms, and post-trauma behavior changes of 96 Midwestern male patrol officers. Findings supported the study's predictions that officers would report exposure to potential traumatic events tend to adhere to traditional gender norms and display posttrauma behaviors that would suggest the form of an alternative, strength-based, post-trauma intervention for male police officers. Adapted from the source document.