The aim of the study is to examine how well MSB (Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency) prepare the Swedish humanitarian aid workers to face stressful situations, looking at the pre- deployment preparation received. The study investigates how effective and relevant the pre- deployment preparation is in terms of building resilience against stress, according to the humanitarian aid workers’ experience. This study has been conducted with a quantitative online survey, combined with a qualitative open- ended survey. The surveys were based on research models on work-related stress and on resilience- building among humanitarian aid workers. The frameworks point out criteria needed to be fulfilled by an organization in order to build sufficient stress- resilience among humanitarian aid workers in the pre- deployment phase. The results reveal that MSB is able to fulfill most of the criteria set in accordance with the theoretical framework. The one and only criterion MSB fails in providing is an open, in- depth discussion about mental health before the aid worker is deployed. This also corresponds to the aid workers experience of not being provided with this. The aid workers’ experience reveals that resilience against stress is important, however, many seem to build resilience independently from MSB.

Humanitarian aid workers live and work in harsh circumstances far from loved ones and support mechanisms. The problem is that international aid must continue to work effectively despite stress levels. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to understand how aid workers perceive their work-related stressors, examine their subsequent experiences of in-house stress management services, and describe the factors that influence aid workers' decisions to access in-house stress management services. The conservation of resources theory was used to understand aid workers experience of stress. A purposive sampling technique was used to identify 12 aid workers with a minimum of 5 years of field experience. Data were collected through semistructured interviews conducted via Skype. After the data were reviewed, unit meanings were assigned and grouped to develop themes. The themes generated were organizational culture, social support, operational environment, the aid worker, adapting and strategizing, stress management services, and services. The greatest stressors participants reported related to the lack of safety and unpredictable working environments, and their experience of accessing stress management services were varied. Assurances of confidentiality and professionalism were the key factors that influenced aid workers engagement with stress management services. Participants received a summary of the findings which included recommendations for aid organizations on improving stress management services for aid workers. The results of this study contribute to the body of knowledge regarding the well-being of aid workers, supporting social change to improve the quality of care for the affected populations they serve.

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Attacks against humanitarian aid workers are a concerning global trend that has been noted since the end of the Cold War. Despite this, limited research is available that combines overt theoretical testing with empirical procedures. A new typology that is grounded in peace and conflict literature was created to uncover rebel perspectives on aid workers within the context of intrastate conflicts. Borrowing from inclusive goods provision and rebel governance work, a theory was developed that predicted that secessionist rebels are less likely to attack aid workers. Aid-Worker Security Database, Uppsala Conflict Data Program databases, and Peace Research Institute of Oslo GRID datasets were used to conduct large-n-study research at country and sub-country levels. The zero-inflated negative binomial mixed model showed no significant effect of secessionism on violence against aid workers at country and sub-country levels of analysis. Logistic mixed model regression showed some evidence that secessionist conflict results in higher odds of violence against aid workers. The potential implication is that conflict types can have an effect on the security of aid workers in the field. The counter-theoretical findings may point to the issues in the methodological approach employed in the study and the limited information. Additionally, one of the key axioms of the theory was the neutral perception of the aid-workers by rebel groups. As this perception was not captured in models, it can be a potential explanatory variable to account for theoretical deviation. Logistic mixed model regression showed some evidence that secessionist conflict results in higher odds of violence against aid workers. The potential implication is that conflict types can have an effect on the security of aid workers in the field. The counter-theoretical findings may point to the issues in the methodological approach employed in the study and the limited information. Additionally, one of the key axioms of the theory was the neutral perception of the aid-workers by rebel groups. As this perception was not captured in models, it can be a potential explanatory variable to account for theoretical deviation. Logistic mixed model regression showed some evidence that secessionist conflict results in higher odds of violence against aid workers. The potential implication is that conflict types can have an effect on the security of aid workers in the field. The counter-theoretical findings may point to the issues in the methodological approach employed in the study and the limited information. Additionally, one of the key axioms of the theory was the neutral perception of the aid-workers by rebel groups. As this perception was not captured in models, it can be a potential explanatory variable to account for theoretical deviation. The counter-theoretical findings may point to the issues in the methodological approach employed in the study and the limited information. Additionally, one of the key axioms of the theory was the neutral perception of the aid-workers by rebel groups. As this perception was not captured in models, it can be a potential explanatory variable to account for theoretical deviation. The counter-theoretical findings may point to the issues in the methodological approach employed in the study and the limited information. Additionally, one of the key axioms of the theory was the neutral perception of the aid-workers by rebel groups. As this perception was not captured in models, it can be a potential explanatory variable to account for theoretical deviation.

In the latest years, European governments have increasingly criminalized providing support to displaced people. Humanitarian non-governmental organizations (NGO) carrying out life-saving search and rescue (SAR) activities in the Mediterranean Sea have been facing wide obstacles in aiding newcomers, and in many instances have been subject to criminal proceedings. This research attempts to analyse the reasons why maritime sea rescue is equated with illegality. In doing so, it seeks to answer the question, “what are the challenges to reaching legal protection for humanitarian aid workers carrying out search and rescue operations in the Mediterranean when faced with criminalization?” The study argues that humanitarian aid workers (HAW) who have been criminalized as a result of their involvement in maritime sea rescue activities, have to endure many systemic deficiencies. Three layers of interrelated challenges are identified: legal, socio-political, and personal challenges. The study concludes that an independent, quality legal defence; a revisitation of the voluntary nature of the humanitarian exemption clause in the 2002 Facilitation Package; and a larger engagement of civil society actors in changing the narrative and improving the public’s practical knowledge of migration would ensure better protection for humanitarian practitioners involved in search and rescue activities. / <p>It was online.</p>

The professionalisation of the humanitarian sector has led to an increasing number of its professional staff worldwide. However, working in humanitarian aid is not a popular career path in mainland China, and some humanitarian organisations have also struggled to recruit Chinese professionals. The thesis explores the challenges that mainland Chinese citizens face when pursuing their careers in the humanitarian sector. It strives to understand what may hinder Chinese from working in international humanitarian aid, dwelling on both the humanitarian recruitment criteria and the expectations of the Chinese society. The thesis is based on the semi-structured qualitative interviews that have been interpreted with the help of thematic analysis under the intersectional and decolonial feminist analytical framework. The study indicates that although there may not be obvious discrimination against people in the humanitarian recruitment process, many affecting factors, such as gender, class, nationality, and culture, create the asymmetrical power dynamics between societal influences in China and the recruitment requirements in the humanitarian sector. I have come to a conclusion that humanitarian organisations have failed to create a diverse and inclusive working environment that would allow people to have equal opportunities and competition. This thesis is meant to help humanitarian organisations adjust their DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) strategies by understanding the hidden factors of recruitment inequalities and via decolonising the humanitarian aid.

Most studies on the mental health of humanitarian aid workers have concentrated on sociodemographic variables or trauma exposure as predictors of psychopathological outcomes. However, less is known about the psychosocial and organizational factors contributing to occupational stress-related disorders in this high-risk occupation group. This mixed-methods, cross-sectional study sought to establish a psychosocial model for burnout and psychological distress among humanitarian staff that comprehensively tested the psychological effects of common adversities and workplace psychosocial stressors in combination. The model further investigated the potential mediating role of individual coping styles and the protective role of organizational psychological safety climate. N=111 full-time aid workers from 52 organizations in Bangladesh completed an online survey, and n=13 participants were followed-up with virtual individual interviews between December 2020 and May 2021. A stepwise model building process with path analysis established an integrated conceptual model with overlapping but distinct pathways from common adversities and workplace stressors to burnout. While greater exposure to both types of stressors was associated with higher levels of burnout and distress, workplace psychosocial stressors had a greater total effect on psychological outcomes than common adversities (β = .52, 95% CI [0.42, 0.90], p = < .001 vs. β = .20, 95% CI [0.03, 0.59], p = .032). Both types of stressors had indirect effects on burnout through negative emotion-focused coping (β = .12, 95% CI [0.30, 2.14], p = .007). However, only workplace stressors and not common adversities directly affected psychological distress (β = .45, 95% CI [0.09, 0.24], p = < .001 vs. β = -.01, 95% CI [-0.09, 0.09], p = .927). Expanded path models indicated that specific domains of stressors, namely, deployment-related interpersonal stressors, work-life interface, and work organization and communication stressors, significantly influenced psychological outcomes. Conditional process analysis showed that higher perceived levels of psychological safety climate buffered the adverse indirect effects of deployment-related interpersonal stressors via negative emotion-focused coping on burnout (β = -.21, 95% CI [-0.08, -0.01], p = .008) and distress (β = -.23, 95% CI [-0.03, -0.01], p = .005). Contrary to findings from the extant literature, sociodemographic variables (except psychiatric history), task-focused coping, and avoidance-focused coping were not significant exogenous variables. Thematic analysis of qualitative data yielded themes that largely converged with and elaborated on statistical results. Qualitative results offered additional insights about the “chronic emergency” organizational culture and professional attitudes of “martyrdom” unique to humanitarian aid workers, which may normalize and reinforce a high-stress work environment and minimized recognition of staff’s mental health needs. The psychosocial model, complemented with qualitative elaboration, can inform the development of evidence-based interventions for staff care. Reducing workplace stressors, improving adaptive coping, and enhancing the psychosocial safety climate of organizations may prevent and alleviate occupational stress-related disorders in humanitarian aid workers and other first responders.

There is a wealth of studies which suggest that manager's positive perceptions/expectations can considerably influence organisational performance; unfortunately, little empirical evidence has been obtained from development studies. This first time research explores how Japanese aid workers' perceptions towards the local staff affects their behaviour and performance in cross-cultural project settings. Moreover, this research focuses on the perceptual and behavioural trait differences of successful and unsuccessful aid workers. With cooperation from Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), 244 valid responses were obtained from the aid workers (managers) through a webbased survey. As a result of statistical analysis, positive causal relationships were confirmed between perception related factors and behaviour related factors and the organisational performance variable. These results strongly suggest that aid worker's positive perceptions result in positive behaviour in local colleagues and subsequently higher organisational performance. In addition, it was discovered that the aid workers' positive perception/expectation about work and their local colleagues was related to higher organisational performance, whilst conversely, the negative perception on their part was generally associated with negative behaviour and lower organisational performance.Although the differences in perceptual tendencies suggested by that these findings apply to Japanese aid managers; however, as human nature is universal, positive perception and behaviour should bring out positive output in most organisations. It is recommended that there is a need for people-related and cross-cultural management skills to ensure successful future activities, and stress management competencies to maintain positive managerial perception on the part of aid workers.

This thesis presents how humanitarian aid workers were attracted, motivated, recruited, and prepared for fieldwork, and how they reported their work experience directly from the field and when they returned home. Data were derived from interviews with experienced aid workers, focus group discussions with presumptive aid workers, analysis of letters from aid workers in the field on MSFs homepages in Europe, and from interviews with recruitment officers at some of the main humanitarian organisations. Health professionals were attracted by the positive images of humanitarian action. They wished to work in teams with like-minded people, and to make a difference in the world. However, this image was not supported by the recruitment officers, or experienced aid workers, who described a complex reality in humanitarian action. The experienced aid workers instead had realised they learned more than they contributed. The recruitment system for relief workers would benefit from a more holistic approach, where personalities of the aid workers are more in focus. More time must be spent with the applicants, both recruited and returning aid workers, in order to improve the system. A socialisation approach could help identify the right personnel and to motivate current personnel to continue.

There is a wealth of studies which suggest that manager's positive perceptions/expectations can considerably influence organisational performance; unfortunately, little empirical evidence has been obtained from development studies. This first time research explores how Japanese aid workers' perceptions towards the local staff affects their behaviour and performance in cross-cultural project settings. Moreover, this research focuses on the perceptual and behavioural trait differences of successful and unsuccessful aid workers. With cooperation from Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), 244 valid responses were obtained from the aid workers (managers) through a webbased survey. As a result of statistical analysis, positive causal relationships were confirmed between perception related factors and behaviour related factors and the organisational performance variable. These results strongly suggest that aid worker¿s positive perceptions result in positive behaviour in local colleagues and subsequently higher organisational performance. In addition, it was discovered that the aid workers' positive perception/expectation about work and their local colleagues was related to higher organisational performance, whilst conversely, the negative perception on their part was generally associated with negative behaviour and lower organisational performance.Although the differences in perceptual tendencies suggested by that these findings apply to Japanese aid managers; however, as human nature is universal, positive perception and behaviour should bring out positive output in most organisations. It is recommended that there is a need for people-related and cross-cultural management skills to ensure successful future activities, and stress management competencies to maintain positive managerial perception on the part of aid workers. / Japan/World Bank Graduate Scholarship Program (JJ/WBGSP).