Factors Influencing Successful Coping among Crime Scene Investigation (CSI) Personnel: Recruiting for Resilience - A Mixed Methods Study

Successful coping is important for staff wellbeing, retention and reducing absenteeism, especially for those employed in high emotional labour jobs such as crime scene investigation (CSI). Antecedents of successful coping can include self-efficacy, locus of control, optimism, resilience, and self-esteem. However, a dearth of literature exists attaining to the importance of emotion-regulation and mindfulness for successful coping in these roles, despite evidence revealing both are conducive to better wellbeing. Additionally, few studies with CSI personnel have employed a mixed-methods approach, which enables exploration of lived experiences. Here, we recruited 84 CSI employees and 88 students undertaking a degree enabling employment within CSI, to comprehensively explore factors predicting successful coping. 75 CSI employees and 88 students took part in the quantitative aspect, where questionnaire data pertaining to the above wellbeing factors, as well as depression, anxiety and stress, were collected. Nine CSI employees took part in the qualitative aspect. This included deeper exploration of resilience and coping, including how CSI personnel manage their occupation. Quantitative analyses revealed that, for CSI personnel, the greatest predictors of successful coping were resilience and emotional regulation. Compared to students, CSI personnel further reported greater self-esteem, optimism, coping self-efficacy, mindfulness and resilience; and fewer difficulties in emotion regulation, depression, anxiety and stress. Qualitative analyses also revealed resilience/emotion-regulation to be key coping factors; but additionally, that finding meaning in work/collegiate support enabled successful coping. Potential implications of findings are discussed and include pre-employment screening for emotion regulation and resilience, and inclusion of such in CSI training/CPD curricula.