RESEARCH_FILE

Charles R. Figley

Tulane University

Known for:Introducing 'compassion fatigue' as a formal psychological construct in 1995 — framing the emotional cost of caring for traumatised individuals as an occupational exposure with documentable consequences, not a personal moral failing

Key findings

1995
Figley's edited volume 'Compassion Fatigue' introduced the term as a formal construct for the secondary traumatic stress experienced by those who care for the traumatised — establishing that the emotional cost of caregiving is measurable and occupationally predictable, opening a systematic research agenda for healthcare worker distress. Compassion Fatigue: Coping with Secondary Traumatic Stress Disorder in Those Who Treat the Traumatized ↗

Research areas

The Science of Clinician Distress: Why Guilt, Silence, and Numbness After a Medical Error Are Occupational Phenomena, Not Character Flaws

Related old scripts

When a colleague laughs after a difficult shift When asking for help feels like failure in medicine Jealousy of Pregnant Friends: Grief, Not Character Flaw When Achievement Feels Like a Debt to Their Sacrifice Taking a real break feels irresponsible right now: why stopping feels unsafe

Related self-checks

Self-check: Emotional numbness after a patient death: what it means Self-check: I feel guilty every time I leave at the bell | The Compassion Drain Self-check: When a colleague laughs after a difficult shift

Related science

The Science of Trying to Conceive: Why the Grief, the Envy, and the Fights Aren't a Character Flaw The Science of Newsroom Burnout: Why Layoffs, Metrics, and Moral Injury Aren't a Personal Failing The Science of Burnout: Why It's a Resource Equation, Not a Willpower Deficit

Researchers to explore

Monique M.C. van Mol Albert W. Wu

Related mechanisms

Compassion Fatigue Cycle Compassion Fatigue