VICARIOUS TRAUMA IN SOCIAL WORK: BETWEEN PROFESSIONAL EMPATHY AND SELF-PRESERVATION
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.32782/humanitas/2026.1.33Keywords:
vicarious trauma, social work, shared traumatic reality, burnout, supervision, professional trainingAbstract
The article examines the phenomenon of vicarious trauma in social work as one of the key challenges of professional practice in the context of prolonged crises and armed conflicts. Vicarious trauma is conceptualized as an indirect psychological impact that arises from continuous exposure to clients’ traumatic experiences and manifests in changes in emotional states, cognitive perceptions, and professional well-being. The aim of the study is to assess the level of theoretical awareness and practical preparedness of social work professionals regarding vicarious traumatization, as well as to analyze existing strategies of professional self-protection and the use of supervision. The empirical basis of the study is a quantitative survey conducted as a pre-training assessment of 54 social service professionals. The findings indicate a gap between awareness of the risks of vicarious trauma and the actual practices aimed at its prevention. A moderate level of theoretical knowledge among respondents was identified, alongside insufficient development of systematic psychosocial self-care skills. Only a small proportion of professionals reported having structured selfregulation strategies that are regularly applied in practice. The study also revealed limited use of supervision as a support tool and a low level of competence in formulating supervision requests. At the same time, most respondents demonstrated awareness of the relationship between their own psychological well-being and the quality of services provided to clients. The study concludes that there is a need to shift from reactive to proactive approaches in ensuring the psychological safety of social work professionals. It highlights the importance of strengthening educational training, developing individual self-care strategies, institutionalizing supervision practices, and implementing trauma-informed organizational environments.
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