Background of Disaster Management: A Phenomenological Study on Job Stress and Coping Strategies of ARFF Personnel

Year 2025, Issue: TAOM2024, 1 - 13, 14.07.2025

Tugay Öney , İnan Eryılmaz , Mehmet Dinç , Eylem Bayrakçı

https://doi.org/10.18394/iid.1531145

Abstract

The main policy of the Aircraft Rescue and Fire Fighting (ARFF) unit, which is an important link in the safety and security of the aviation sector, is to "hope for the best" and "be ready for the worst". Within the framework of this policy, the ARFF service is ready for duty 24/7 in emergency and disaster situations as well as in aviation. It is inevitable that ARFF service employees are exposed to occupational stress during their activities in emergencies and disasters, which is a job where a small mistake can result in disaster. For this reason, the aim of the study is to determine the job stress in the ARFF unit personnel who took part in the earthquake disaster in Turkey in 2023 and their experiences of struggling with job stress. For this purpose, phenomenology design was selected from qualitative research methods. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with 13 ARFF personnel. The interview data was edited by transcribing, meaningful data was determined and themes were created. When the findings of the study are examined, it is seen that the majority of the employees stated working conditions as the main source of stress, while management practices, type/nature of work, danger or risk and life events were found to be other sources of stress. Individual approaches to job stress were mostly psychological interventions, while organizational interventions were found to be significantly influenced by work structure and management practices.

Keywords

Job Stress , Earthquake , Aviation Sector , ARFF Personnel

Afetle Mücadelenin Arka Planı: ARFF Personelinin İş Stresi ve Stresle Başa Çıkma Stratejileri Üzerinde Fenomenolojik Bir Araştırma

Abstract

Havacılık sektörünün güvenliğinin ve uçuş emniyetinin önemli bir halkası olan hava araçlarından kurtarma ve yangınla mücadele (ARFF) biriminin esas politikası ‘‘en iyisini ummak’’ ve ‘‘en kötüsüne hazır olmak’’tır. Bu politika çerçevesinde ARFF hizmeti havacılık alanında olduğu kadar acil durum ve afet durumlarında da 7/24 göreve hazırdır. Küçük bir hatanın felaketle neticelenebileceği bir iş olan ARFF hizmetinde çalışanların acil durum ve afetlerdeki faaliyetlerinde mesleki strese maruz kalması ise kaçınılmazdır. Bu nedenle çalışmanın amacı 2023 yılında Türkiye’de yaşanan deprem felaketinde görev alan ARFF birimi personelinde iş stresini ve yaşanılan iş stresine ilişkin mücadele deneyimlerini belirlemektir. Bu amaç doğrultusunda nitel araştırma yöntemlerinden olgubilim (fenomenoloji) deseni seçilmiştir. Veriler 13 ARFF personeli ile yarı yapılandırılmış görüşme kullanılarak toplanmıştır. Görüşme verileri yazıya geçirilerek düzenlenmiş, anlamlı veriler saptanarak temalar oluşturulmuştur. Çalışmanın bulgularına bakıldığında, Çalışanların çoğunluğu ana stres kaynağı olarak çalışma koşullarını vurgulamıştır. Yönetim uygulamaları, işin türü/doğası tehlike veya risk ve yaşam olayları diğer stres kaynakları olarak bulgulanmıştır. İş stresine bireysel yaklaşımların ise çoğunlukla psikolojik müdahaleler olduğu görülürken, kurumsal müdahalelerde çalışma yapısı ve yönetim uygulamalarının etkisinin önemli derecede olduğu görülmüştür.

Keywords

İş Stresi , Deprem , Havacılık Sektörü , ARFF Personeli

Ethical Statement

Bu araştırma için Süleyman Demirel Üniversitesi Sosyal ve Beşeri Bilimler Etik Kurulu’ndan 25.04.2024 tarih ve 732757 sayılı karar numarası ile Etik Kurul Onayı alınmıştır.

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