TY - JOUR
T1 - Occupational stressors and the mental health of truckers
AU - Shattell, Mona
AU - Apostolopoulos, Yorghos
AU - Snmez, Sevil
AU - Griffin, Mary
N1 - Funding Information:
Research for this paper was funded by the U.S. National Institutes of Health (R01-HD042972) and Arizona State University. We thank Caitlin Fehrenbacher and Kate Jessup for their editorial assistance and we appreciate the referees for their critiques of earlier drafts of this paper. We are grateful to all individuals who generously shared with us personal information about their lives in the context of the “Truckers and Community Health Project.” Address correspondence to Mona Shattell, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, School of Nursing, P.O. Box 26170, Greensboro, NC 27402. E-mail: mona shattell@uncg.edu
PY - 2010/8
Y1 - 2010/8
N2 - Trucking has been classified as one of the highest-risk occupations in the United States. Occupational stress is even greater for long-haul truckers who are away from home, family, friends, and other support networks for several days or weeks at a time. Occupational stressors and the mental health of truckers was studied using data collected as part of a large multisite ethno-epidemiological study of trucker networks. Findings from the current study show that truckers face many occupational stressors including constant time pressures, social isolation, disrespectful treatment from others, driving hazards such as weather changes, traffic, and road conditions, and violence or fear of violence. Facing such stressors may be a factor in the prevalence of risky behaviors including drug use and paying for sex. Therefore, mental health promotion and treatment for truckers is an important area of concern and must be examined within the broader context of the transportation environment.
AB - Trucking has been classified as one of the highest-risk occupations in the United States. Occupational stress is even greater for long-haul truckers who are away from home, family, friends, and other support networks for several days or weeks at a time. Occupational stressors and the mental health of truckers was studied using data collected as part of a large multisite ethno-epidemiological study of trucker networks. Findings from the current study show that truckers face many occupational stressors including constant time pressures, social isolation, disrespectful treatment from others, driving hazards such as weather changes, traffic, and road conditions, and violence or fear of violence. Facing such stressors may be a factor in the prevalence of risky behaviors including drug use and paying for sex. Therefore, mental health promotion and treatment for truckers is an important area of concern and must be examined within the broader context of the transportation environment.
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U2 - 10.3109/01612840.2010.488783
DO - 10.3109/01612840.2010.488783
M3 - Article
C2 - 20701418
AN - SCOPUS:77955574863
SN - 0161-2840
VL - 31
SP - 561
EP - 568
JO - Issues in Mental Health Nursing
JF - Issues in Mental Health Nursing
IS - 9
ER -