Abstract
Background
Workplace sense of belonging is an important contributor to health and wellbeing.
It may be even more important for paramedics to buffer against distress inherent in
the workplace. To date, however, there has been no research on paramedic workplace
sense of belonging and wellbeing.
Methods
Using network analysis, this study aimed to identify the dynamic relationships of
workplace sense of belonging in paramedics with variables associated with wellbeing
and ill-being—identity, coping self-efficacy and unhealthy coping. Participants were
a convenience sample of 72 employed paramedics.
Results
The results showed workplace sense of belonging linked to other variables through
distress, distinguishable by the relationship with unhealthy coping for wellbeing
and ill-being. The relationships between identity (perfectionism and sense of self)
as well as the relationship between perfectionism and unhealthy coping were stronger
for those with ill-being than observed for those with wellbeing.
Conclusions
These results identified the mechanisms by which the paramedicine workplace can contribute
to distress and unhealthy coping strategies, which can lead to mental illnesses. They
also highlight contributions of individual components of sense of belonging highlighting
potential targets for interventions to reduce the risk of psychological distress and
unhealthy coping amongst paramedics in the workplace.
Keywords
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: March 01, 2023
Accepted:
February 6,
2023
Received in revised form:
January 26,
2023
Received:
October 18,
2022
Publication stage
In Press Corrected ProofIdentification
Copyright
© 2023 Published by Elsevier Ltd on behalf of College of Emergency Nursing Australasia.
