An Assessment of Judges’ Self‐Reported Experiences of Secondary Traumatic Stress

• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1111/jfcj.12134
• Published date: 01 June 2019
• Date: 01 June 2019

An Assessment of Judges’ Self-Reported

Experiences of Secondary Traumatic Stress

By Charles P. Edwards and Monica K. Miller

ABSTRACT

Many judges experience occupation-specific stress, such as secondary traumatic stress

(STS), burnout, compassion fatigue, and vicarious traumatization. A content analysis of

762 judges’ open-ended responses to a survey asking whether they had suffered from STS

revealed that judges moderately experienced most types of stress. Some case types (e.g.,

family court) and some job aspects (e.g., gruesome evidence) were particularly stressful.

Judges reported both positive (e.g., social support) and negative (e.g., distractions) coping

mechanisms. Interventions should be tailored to judges’ characteristics, (e.g., gender), job

(e.g., family court), beliefs (e.g., that STS does not exist), and level of distress.

Key words: judicial stress, vicarious trauma, secondary stress, burnout, Constructivist Self-

Development Theory.

“Most if not all who claim such a thing [that judicial stress exists] are government scam-

mers or extraordinarily weak minded.” -Judge 5

“I will be out running and suddenly I see the burned-off face of a 5-year [old] child in my

head and it won’t go away.” -Judge 84

Judges have the duty to decide the fate of others, whether it is deciding whether to

send a person to jail or deciding whether to terminate a person’s parental rights. In doing

so, they can be exposed to stressful materials including testimony, evidence, or

Charles P. Edwards, M.A., is a doctoral student in the Interdisciplinary Social Psychology Ph.D.

Program at the University of Nevada, Reno. He received his M.A. in psychology from Boston University.

His research interests are in psychology and law; specifically, judge stress and jury decision-making.

Monica K. Miller, J.D., Ph.D., is a Professor at the University of Nevada, Reno. She received her

J.D. from the University of Nebraska College of Law and her PhD from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln

Law Psychology Program. Her main research interests include the study of stress related to the legal system,

legal decision-making, and problem-solving courts.

The authors would like to thank The National Judicial College for their assistance and support.

Parts of this data were described in a general, non-scientific way in a brief news article in the Judicial Edge

Today newsletter which is published by The National Judicial College. It can be found here: https://

www.judges.org/nearly-half-judges-suffered-condition/

Juvenile and Family Court Journal 70, No. 2

©2019 National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges

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information presented during the course of trial (Lebovits, 2017). How judges deal with

that stress and to what extent this stress has negative effects can vary greatly. However,

it might be expected that experiences of stress, to an extent, would be somewhat consis-

tent across judges because of the general overlap of responsibilities. Thus, how is it that,

as shown by the quotes above, two people in the same occupation could have such wildly

different beliefs pertaining to the existence (and, therefore, the experience) of secondary

stress? This article will investigate this variety of beliefs and experiences.

Most studies examining judicial stress (e.g., Lustig et al., 2008; Miller, Edwards,

Reichert, & Bornstein, 2018; Miller, Reichert, Bornstein, & Shulman, 2018), have used

pre-developed survey-type measures developed for a broad population (for interview-type

methods, see Chamberlain & Miller, 2009; Miller, Flores, & Pitcher, 2009). The current

study used a new methodology: asking judges a simple yes or no question and allowing

them to elaborate as they see fit. The qualitative data collected from open-ended

responses provides rich, detailed insight into an issue that affects many judges while also

allowing judges to provide information that would not necessarily be captured by the

completion of a multiple-choice survey or similar forced-choice stress measure.

This article examined judges’ perceptions and experiences of stress primarily

through open-ended secondary data provided by judges when completing a survey

regarding secondary traumatic stress. These data were then analyzed to evaluate whether

judges’ responses reflect characteristics of certain stress theories—specifically, vicarious

trauma, compassion fatigue, and Constructivist Self-Development Theory. We also ana-

lyzed whether responses reveal common causes of stress, coping methods used, or sug-

gested interventions. Results provide valuable insight on how judges experience and

perceive secondary stress caused by their occupation, as well as suggest new approaches

and potential concerns for those who desire to limit judges’ stress.

JUDICIAL STRESS

Working in the legal system can be stressful, as revealed by research on correctional

officers (Lambert, Kim, Keena, & Cheeseman, 2017), attorneys (Reed & Bornstein,

2013), police officers (Franke & Ramey, 2013), and probation officers (Slate & Johnson,

2013). Judges are no exception—they are susceptible to a variety of stressors (Chamber-

lain & Richardson, 2013).

Although many judges can believe that their work is rewarding, the position is

accompanied by exposure to a myriad of potential stressors. Judges can experience stress

when rendering decisions that will affect the lives of trial participants and their families,

the community, and future rulings that might use the decision as precedent. Judges are

also constantly under the public microscope, as their decisions can present the possibility

for attacks from the media and community—a consequence that would affect elected

judges more so than appointed judges (Resnick, Myatt, & Marotta, 2011).

Judges might also experience stress through indirect means. Judges must hear and

see gruesome testimony and evidence (Chamberlain & Miller, 2008; Chamberlain &

Miller, 2009). Juvenile and family court judges might be especially prone to stress, as

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