VICTIM SERVICE PROVIDERS AND THE INSTITUTIONS THEY WORK WITHIN: A QUALITATIVE INVESTIGATION INTO THE TRAUMA TRANSMISSION PROCESS

Abstract

Victim service providers occupy a critical yet vulnerable position within the criminal justice system, routinely supporting individuals exposed to crime while themselves facing elevated experiences of vicarious trauma. Although prior research has primarily examined individual and contextual contributors to these outcomes, the role of institutions remains under investigated despite their essential role in shaping occupation exposure and coping capacity. This study addresses this gap by examining how institutional structures influence the emergence and management of vicarious trauma among victim service providers. Drawing on 37 qualitative interviews, findings demonstrate that institutions actively shape both the intensity and unequal distribution of trauma-related strain. Participants described mandated self-care practices as an additional emotional and cognitive burden rather than a protective factor. Women who were younger, less experienced practitioners in intervention-focused roles often described more intense or frequent experiences with symptoms that aligned with vicarious trauma; however, access to institutional resources emerged as a more consistent determinant of vulnerability than the role type alone. Notably, women of color were frequently leveraged for their perceived cultural proximity to survivors, increasing their exposure to emotionally intensive situations and, in turn, their risk of vicarious trauma. These findings underscore the need to reconceptualize vicarious trauma through an institutional lens, shifting attention from individual resilience and coping toward the structural conditions that shape exposure, coping, and recovery.