Date

5-20-2026

Department

School of Behavioral Sciences

Degree

Doctor of Education in Community Care and Counseling (EdD)

Chair

Laura MacKenzie

Keywords

paramedic, paramedics, emergency medical services, EMS, first responders, phenomenology, hermeneutic phenomenology, lived experience, meaning-making, meaning, narrative identity, identity development, compartmentalization, emotional distancing, humanization, moral distress, moral injury, posttraumatic growth, transformational learning, psychological well-being, resilience, coping, stress, trauma exposure, social support, peer support, workplace culture, organizational stress, healthcare environment, spirituality, worldview, existential reflection

Disciplines

Counseling | Social and Behavioral Sciences

Abstract

The purpose of this hermeneutic phenomenological study was to explore the experiences of paramedics in Western society, who self-report sustaining positive psychological well-being despite their emotionally and psychologically demanding work, examining the interplay of their narrative identity, spirituality, worldviews, and social connections. The stories paramedics construct about their realities can reveal the underlying meanings and how their role has molded who they are, best viewed through a threefold constructivist theoretical framework: narrative identity theory to understand how paramedics make sense of their experiences, transformational learning theory to identify how paramedics adjust their worldviews to while coping, and posttraumatic growth theory to illuminate how paramedics might grow from their experiences. Accordingly, the research questions were designed to elicit prereflective stories of paramedic experience: How do paramedics describe their narrative identity and what it means to be a paramedic? How do paramedics describe the distressing experiences they face, and the ways they navigate challenges in their work? How do paramedics describe the ways in which connection, spirituality, values, and moral frameworks shape their lived experiences? How do paramedics describe experiences of transformation and growth? The findings suggest that professional identity is strongly anchored in clinical competence but is shaped by human connection learned in unexpected places. What most consider difficult calls were managed by compartmentalization. Skills and directives became the focus, while emotional connection was kept at a distance. Social connection, informal support, and both secular and religious spirituality supported coping. Overall, participants described living with an ongoing tension between emotional distance and recognizing the person behind the patient as they continued to change and grow.

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