LOS NUEVOS RETOS DEL PSICOLOGO.... NEW CHALLENGES OF PSYCHOLOGIST

Psychological impact of the Prestige catastrophe1

José Manuel Sabucedo2, Constantino Arce, María José Ferraces, Hipólito Merino,

and Mar Durán (Universidad de Santiago de Compostela, Spain)
DOCUMENTO COMPLETO

ABSTRACT.
There have been many studies on natural and technological disasters which point out the dramatic effects that these types of phenomena have on the psychological health of individuals and communities. Studies on the psychological consequences of the oil spill from the tanker Exxon Valdez demonstrated that the psychological impact on the population had been as significant as the environmental one. Nevertheless, these results cannot be generalised, as the characteristics of the disaster, along with the personal and social resources available to the affected population, also have to be taken into account. In this descriptive study, we shall analyse the impact of these three factors over different psychological and psychosocial measurements recorded in individuals affected by the Prestige disaster. The results show that those affected have received a good deal of social support and are satisfied with the economic aid received. These aspects, which serve to reduce the uncertainty generated in disasters, may have been crucial in alleviating the psychological impact of that event. Moreover, the inter-group analyses carried out show that those affected with high support and satisfaction scores are currently in a better situation than those affected with low scores in those variables, and even better than those not affected.

KEY WORDS. Prestige. Psychological impact. Catastrophe. Descriptive survey study.