Police officers and trauma

This book plunges into the psychological world of Burkinabe police officers confronted with critical incidents. Through an in-depth qualitative study it examines the traumatic consequences of their exposure to extreme events in an institutional context devoid of formal psychological support mechanisms. The study is based on a methodology combining semi-structured interviews and three internationally recognized psychometric tests: the TraumaQ (trauma assessment) the WCC (coping strategies) and the DSQ-40 (defense mechanisms). The analysis focuses on two cases of police officers who survived a terrorist ambush together during an operation. The results reveal a correlation between the psychological mechanisms mobilized and the degree of resilience. While one subject showed relatively unaffected adaptation thanks to problem-focused coping strategies and mature defenses the other showed marked decompensation characterized by alternating coping styles and the use of the full range of defensive mechanisms.