Sep 8/20

Thank you for your interest in the Firefighter Stress Study. Due to the immense response to our recruiting effort, we’ve reached study capacity. Please stay tuned for round two of recruitment. Stay safe!   

Currently Recruiting for Paid Firefighter Stress Study - Survey

We invite you to participate in an online survey study about your stress at work and its effect on your health and well-being. The purpose of the study is to better understand how firefighters manage stressful work demands and how this affects their health on and off the job.

The insights from the current study will hold promise to inform future interventions to minimize the impact of work stress and may help fire departments develop policies and programs to minimize firefighters’ stress. Also, it will provide researchers with a clearer idea of the support for health and well-being firefighters receive both at home and at work. To be eligible for participation in the current study, you must be at least 18 years old and consider your primary occupation to be firefighting. In addition, you must be in a relationship.

To participate in the study, you will first complete an online survey about your demographics, personality, and job information, and then you will complete five short, online surveys over four days (before and after shifts and during your time between shifts). These surveys ask questions about your experiences during the shift and your health and well-being on and off the job. You will also be asked to invite your significant other to complete an online survey about the impact of your work stress on their home life and how they support you.

If you complete all of the surveys in this study, you and your significant other will receive $80 total. You will receive $15 for completing the initial survey (30-45 minutes) and $6 for each of the 5 short follow-up surveys or $30 total (5-10 minutes each). Also, you will be asked to invite your partner to participate in the survey as well.  Your partner will receive $25 for completing one survey (30-45 minutes). If you complete all of these surveys and invite your partner to participate, then you will receive an additional $10 bonus. Thus, you will receive a total of $55 for full participation in this study and your partner will receive $25.

If you are interested in participating in this survey study, please click the link below. You will be directed to the consent form for this study, where you will find more detailed information.

https://lerillinois.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_4HO99oBOPAZpB8F

In collaboration with YoungAh Park, PhD, from The School of Labor and Employment Relations, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, The Illinois Fire Service Institute (IFSI) endorses this study and encourages your participation. The study has been approved by the Office for the Protection of Research Subjects at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Thank you and I hope that you will consider participating in our study. If you have any questions or concerns, please send an email to lerfirefighterstudy@uillinois.edu.