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.

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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.

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In the perilous waters of the Mediterranean Sea, migrants find themselves facing limited choices when in distress. Their options are stark: either to rely on the lifesaving efforts of Non- Governmental Organisations (NGO) aid workers conducting Search and Rescue (SAR) Operations, to be intercepted by the Libyan Coast Guard (LCG) and subsequently detained in Libya where their human rights are gravely violated, or to face the tragic fate of perishing at sea. Unfortunately, the criminalisation of SAR Operations, spearheaded by NGO aid workers, hinders the rescue of migrants, thereby exacerbating the risks they face and leaving them vulnerable to interception by the LCG. This interception, as argued in this thesis, inevitably leads to the perpetration of Crimes Against Humanity (CAH) against these vulnerable migrants. This thesis sheds light on the issue of Italy’s increasing criminalisation and vilification of humanitarian aid workers engaged in SAR missions in the Mediterranean Sea. It critically examines the consequences of such criminalisation on the lives and rights of migrants, exploring the complex dynamics between SAR Operations, interception by the LCG, and the commission of CAH. Drawing upon a comprehensive lens of interpretation that integrates legal analysis, human rights principles, and the international legal framework, this study concludes that criminalisation of SAR operations is indeed a contributing factor towards the CAH faced by migrants in Libya. Moreover, it identifies the potential liability of Italian State Officials (ISO) at the International Criminal Court (ICC) for their role in enacting legislations that effectively criminalises SAR operations.