Firefighters act within extreme environments, work under threatening conditions and are often exposed to goal conflicts (e.g., self-protection vs. mission objective) during their missions. However, what are the consequences of these safety and task goal conflicts, and what countermeasures could help to reduce their occurrence? In an online survey, 340 firefighters were asked about goal conflicts, risky decision making, debriefings and the frequency of difficulties in teamwork during firefighting. Associations between the survey variables were determined by multivariate regression and mediation analyses. Data show that goal conflicts were associated with risky decision making and unsafe acts. Furthermore, debriefings were associated with fewer goal conflicts, as mediated by less-frequent difficulties with teamwork (communication, leadership and shared mental models). Though limited by the cross-sectional design of our study, the results provide evidence that debriefing is a valuable tool to reduce difficulties experienced with teamwork on missions and therefore reduce the occurrence of conflicting goals. Fewer goal conflicts are associated with a decrease in unsafe decisions and, thus, a safer working environment for firefighters. Accordingly, it is recommended to conduct debriefings, with an increased focus on team aspects.

Flow is often experienced under stress-related conditions and associated with improved performance and well-being. Different workplace stressors and resources demonstrably affect individual flow. Considering the team level, our study explores the associations between typical teamwork-related stressors and resources and team flow. Firefighters work under extremely challenging conditions and rely on functioning teamwork processes, thereby constituting a promising sample for examining team flow and its associated factors. An online questionnaire was implemented in Germany examining frequency of team flow, experienced teamwork-related stressors, and resources in firefighting missions. Collective orientation was also measured as a factor potentially associated with team flow. The final sample consisted of 317 experienced firefighters. Multiple regression analyses showed that the more often firefighters experienced stressors of teamwork (e.g., problems regarding leadership or lacking shared mental models) the less often they experienced team flow. Conversely, the experience of resources of teamwork (e.g., good communication and shared mental models) was associated with more frequent team flow. Collective orientation was positively associated with team flow. As team competencies are trainable, the study offers concrete approaches for interventions strengthening teamwork and team flow, thereby benefitting firefighters but also teams in other professions.

In the complex work environments of firefighting teams, it is often human error or difficulties in teamwork that lead to dangerous situations. To prevent these, it is essential to know the teamwork-related stressors and resources in firefighting operations. A measurement tool is needed to evaluate these stressors and resources. A successive instrument development process was conducted to identify the relevant teamwork-related stressors and resources in firefighting operations. First, interviews with experienced firefighters, and second, a document analysis were conducted and evaluated to provide an overview of the teamwork-related stressors and resources. Thereupon, a questionnaire, the REST-Q Fire, was developed asking about the experienced frequency and intensity of the identified teamwork-related stressors and resources in firefighting operations. Afterwards, an online study with firefighters was conducted (N = 491). CFAs confirmed the assumed structure of the REST-Q Fire and a positive correlation of the intensity of stressors with stress was shown (r = .19 - .27). Further, the resources were overall more frequently and intensively perceived than the stressors. The most important stressors were ‘behavior of leaders’ (M (SD)_frequency = 2.80 (0.83), M (SD)_intensity = 3.59 (1.12)), and ‘behavior of team members’ (M (SD)_frequency = 2.77 (0.75), M (SD)_intensity = 3.59 (1.05)). The most important resources, on the other hand, were ‘knowledge about skills and behavior of team members’ (M (SD)_frequency = 3.96 (0.63), M (SD)_intensity = 4.24 (0.78)), ‘watch out for/ check on each other’ (M (SD)_frequency = 3.96 (0.70), M (SD)_intensity = 4.20 (0.80)), and ‘reliability of team members’ (M (SD)_frequency = 3.96 (0.51), M (SD)_intensity = 4.16 (0.73)). As a result, training needs for trainees in the fire service and experienced firefighters were derived.