NCJ Number
142311
Journal
Policing and Society Volume: 3 Issue: 2 Dated: (1993) Pages: 137-150
Date Published
1993
Length
14 pages
Annotation
A sample of 232 constables, sergeants, and inspectors in a large provincial British police force completed a questionnaire dealing with the occupational stress they experienced. The questionnaire consisted of items describing demographics and police service, frequency of feeling stressed, stressfulness of occupations, role and organizational stressors, and task frequency and stress intensity.
Abstract
About 70 percent of the sample reported feeling stressed on a regular basis, while only 5 percent of the officers said they never felt stressed. There were no significant differences in feelings of stress reported between male and female officers or between different ranks. On a list of 24 occupations, the respondents rated the stressfulness of being a police officer second only to that of a bomb disposal officer. The organizational factors chosen as contributing most to occupational stress included poor shift patterns, time pressures, and internal discipline and complaints procedures. However, the grouping of factors that included personal danger, aggression and low regard from the public, and discipline procedures was collectively the most stressful for these officers. The respondents found dealing with policing riots or public disorder, rape and sex offenses, sudden death, and domestic disputes the most stressful tasks. Routine policing work in Britain is stressful, therefore, because it is mainly reactive, it requires police to engage in social maintenance work, and it involves managing conflicts with persons who often show a lack of deference to the officer's authority. 6 tables and 29 references