NCJ Number
208264
Journal
Police Chief Volume: 71 Issue: 11 Dated: November 2004 Pages: 46,48,51-52,54
Date Published
November 2004
Length
5 pages
Annotation
This article describes the four stress factors unique to rural police officers and offers recommendations for stress management.
Abstract
In a 1978 issue of the Police Chief, two researchers, Sandy and Devine, presented the notion that rural police officers suffer from four stress factors not experienced by urban or suburban police officers. These four stressors were described as security, social factors, working conditions, and inactivity. The article describes these four stressors in turn and then presents the results of a recent study on small-town and rural police officer stress. The study involved a survey and a train-the-trainer three-day conference. The survey results indicated support for the hypotheses about rural police officer stress put forth by Sandy and Devine in 1978. Although not all of their insights were supported in the current analysis, their observations can be used to help reduce rural police officer stress. Several recommendations are offered toward this end, including the provision of training in police officer safety and education on the realities of small-town and rural policing.