Analysing the role of psychosocial factors on seafarers' mental health post-covid-19 and beyond

• Main Author: Lai, Daniel Wei Jie
• Other Authors: Kelvin Pang Ka Liong
• Format: Final Year Project
• Language: English
• Published: Nanyang Technological University 2023
• Subjects: Engineering::Maritime studies
• Online Access: https://hdl.handle.net/10356/171657
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

Purpose – This research focuses on the psychosocial impacts of working in the seafaring sector. Traits like self-understanding, social interactions, and mental processes that sustain links between the individual and their social surroundings are the subject of psychosocial theories. Learning more about the challenges seafarers encounter will shed light on their effect on seafarers’ mental health. For this paper, four factors affecting mental health were highlighted: onboard peer support, psychological capital, fatigue, and burnout. Design/Methodology/Approach – Data cleaning and transference to SPSS and generating descriptive statistics were conducted. Next, factor analysis was conducted to identify underlying constructs: onboard peer support, psychological capital, burnout, fatigue, and mental health. To verify internal consistency, the reliability of the questionnaire responses was examined using Cronbach's alpha and adjusted item-total correlation coefficients. Thereafter, ANOVA tests were utilised to find group differences, and multiple regression analysis to explain links among the constructs. Findings – The validated hypotheses confirm that onboard peer support is important in increasing psychological capital, decreasing burnout, and improving mental health among seafarers. These associations highlight the significance of creating supportive settings and developing psychological resilience in the maritime sector. The results found that fatigue and burnout correlated weakly with mental health. This highlights the complex interactions of factors contributing to one’s mental health in the maritime setting. Originality/Value – This thesis fills a huge vacuum in the literature and adds novel approaches and viewpoints to the study of the mental health of seafarers. This research provides useful insights for the maritime industry, psychosocial theories, and larger initiatives to promote mental health awareness internationally by comprehending the obstacles and factors impacting the mental health of seafarers. Keywords: Burnout, Fatigue, Maritime Industry, Mental Health, Onboard Peer Support, Post-COVID-19, Psychological Capital, Psychosocial, Seafarers