Handling the worst: A review of approaches to handling trauma materials for the minimization of worker distress

Exposure to aversive materials documenting traumatic events is known to have significant impacts on workers’ psychological health, potentially leading to mental health conditions such as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). With the rapid proliferation of technology, there has been exponential growth in the volume and detail of video, image and audio depictions of abuse and catastrophe. Utilizing an occupational safety perspective, this article summarizes literature on the informal tactics used by workers routinely exposed to traumatic materials to mitigate their distress. Emerging recommendations for the safer occupational management of trauma materials are also considered. A discussion of the differing perspectives appraising workers’ self-reported efforts to emotionally detach from their engagement with these materials is undertaken, with attention drawn to questions raised when an occupational safety perspective is privileged within this debate. Finally, the authors briefly examine the implications of these findings on future directions for research and policy.