Keywords

first responders, stigma, measurement, mental health

Abstract

First responders routinely face exposure to critical incidents within the line of duty, resulting in higher prevalence of psychopathological conditions compared to the general population. However, a growing body of research identified a severe underutilization of mental health-related services among this population, with stigma towards mental illness being the most cited barrier to seeking care. Stigma as a construct is being actively measured, but the factor structure of stigma towards mental health remains contested in literature. Optimal model fit for Stuart’s Police Officer Stigma Scale is an example of these empirical debates, as both single-factor and two-factor models are offered as optimal fits for the underlying construct. The current study aims to provide additional information about the factor structure of the POSS via confirmatory factor analysis, evaluating the two competing models using a large sample of first responders. Participants are 1,275 first responders in the state of Florida recruited as part of a state-mandated training who completed the POSS via a digitally administered Qualtrics survey. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was used to confirm the factor structure derived from Burzee et al. (2022) with this sample of 1,275 first responders and model fit was compared against a single factor solution. Confirmatory factor analyses indicated that the two-factor model of the Police Officer Stigma Scale demonstrated significantly better fit than the single-factor alternative across multiple indices. The two-factor solution yielded lower RMSEA and SRMR values, higher CFI and TLI values, and improved AIC and BIC information criteria. A significant Satorra-Bentler chi-square difference test further supported the two-factor model as a more accurate representation of the stigma construct in this sample.

Completion Date

2025

Semester

Fall

Committee Chair

Bowers, Clint

Degree

Master of Science (M.S.)

College

College of Sciences

Department

Psychology

Format

PDF

Identifier

DP0029750

Document Type

Thesis

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