See also: Addressing Police Officer Stress: Programs and Practices

Introduction

Research suggests that police work can have a profound effect on officers, impacting their ability to do their jobs.[1] For officers, actions taken or not taken on the job may have stressful legal and social consequences.[2] In addition, some officers experience trauma resulting from exposure to violence and human suffering.[3] Another study found a relationship between years of service and mental health problems; officers who had more time on the police force were more likely to experience mental health issues.[4]

Officers experiencing occupational stress may report the following symptoms:

  • Physical (e.g., fatigue, headaches, dizziness).
  • Cognitive (e.g., confusion, poor concentration, poor memory).
  • Emotional (e.g., depression, anger, irritability).
  • Behavioral (e.g., antisocial behavior, loss of appetite, increased alcohol consumption).[5]

These symptoms may be indicative of a diagnosable mental health disorder.

Organizational issues, such as race and gender discrimination, lack of trust in other officers, and lack of job satisfaction are other sources of stress.[6] Researchers theorize that, to some extent, police expect and are prepared for stressful situations when interacting with the public, but not within their own organization. Organizational stress may lead to feelings of betrayal and cause a loss of trust in their department.[7] Several studies have noted an association between perceived stress and shift work, common in policing.[8] The variation in scheduling and hours worked can cumulatively place additional stress on officers.[9]

This article explores the effects that stress and trauma can have on the general well-being of police officers and identifies future areas for research to better understand the problem.

Effects of Stress and Trauma on Police Officers

Impacts of police stress range from mild to severe. Common effects of stress include headache, irritability or anger, fatigue, and social withdrawal, among others.[10] Over time, stress can lead to more severe physical health consequences, such as heart disease and high blood pressure.[11] Research suggests that police officers may even have lower life expectancies than the general population due to stress, however, more research is needed to determine the extent and nature of this relationship.[12]

Symptoms of Stress

Poor Sleep

Several police surveys have indicated an association between high levels of perceived stress and self-reported poor sleep.[13] One study found that organizational stressors were strongly related to poor overall sleep quality, whereas stress resulting from critical incident exposure was related to nightmares, but less associated with general sleep issues.[14] Another study found a link between increased stress, lower perceived health, and more sleep complaints in police officers.[15] Other research identifies significant deficits in cognition (e.g., attention, learning, memory) as a result of sleep deprivation, which could be detrimental to police work.[16]

Negative Coping Mechanisms

Many officers develop negative coping mechanisms as they adjust to police culture.[17] Negative coping mechanisms include avoidance of friends and family, substance use, and repression of emotions which can reinforce feelings of isolation.[18] Alcohol consumption is often employed as a way for officers to socialize and as a maladaptive coping mechanism for stress.[19] After experiencing trauma, some officers develop coping mechanisms that reinforce their separation and isolation from the civilian population.[20]

Burnout

Maslach et al. (2001) defined burnout as a “prolonged response to chronic emotional and interpersonal stressors on the job.”[21] Police officers may be susceptible to burnout due to the nature of police work, which requires officers to interact with the public in stressful or emotional situations.[22] Over time, this type of exposure can foster feelings of exhaustion that result in emotional and cognitive distancing from work.[23] Officers may exhibit burnout by adopting more cynical attitudes to their work and the public and insulating themselves from the emotional exhaustion of repeated exposure to stressful situations. One study found that efforts to feel true emotional sympathy for people were significantly positively correlated with elevated levels of emotional exhaustion among police officers.[24]

Aggression and Violence

In one study of police officers, those who reported experiencing a higher level of perceived stress were more likely to report engaging in intimate partner violence.[25] Another study sample found that 60% of police spouses experienced verbal and/or emotional abuse.[26] Some research suggests a positive association between number of hours worked by an officer and their likelihood of perpetrating domestic violence.[27]

Little research is available on the impact stress has on an officer’s decision to use force in police-civilian interactions. Existing research findings have shown mixed results, though these studies may be outdated and/or lack generalizable samples.[28]

Mental Health Disorders

The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) includes a category of clinical mental health diagnoses: Trauma and Stress-Related Disorders.[29] While most individuals experience levels of distress with a traumatic incident, some will go on to experience persistent issues, such as posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), requiring treatment.[30] Mental health treatment can be beneficial to anyone experiencing distress after exposure to trauma, regardless of symptom severity.[31]

Chronic Stress

Chronic stress can impair individuals’ abilities to regulate emotions, make timely decisions, and exercise sound judgment. Defined as the “stress resulting from repeated exposure to situations that lead to the release of stress hormones,”[32] chronic stress can also have negative physical effects.[33] Police officers can develop chronic stress through exposure to critical incidents.[34] According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, critical incidents include exposure to tragedy, death, serious injuries, and threatening situations, to which police are occasionally exposed. Stress caused by exposure to critical incidents can manifest in negative physical, cognitive, emotional, or behavioral symptoms.[35]

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

The American Psychiatric Association defines PTSD as a psychiatric disorder brought on by experiencing any traumatic event. Symptoms include intrusive thoughts, thought avoidance, negative changes in mood, and changes in physical and emotional reactions (i.e., being easily startled, self-destructive behavior, irritability).[36] Elevated stress levels are associated with increased risk of PTSD and depression among police officers.[37]

The medical community views PTSD and related mental health disorders among first responders as occupational hazards, normalizing their occurrence within the profession.[38] Officers can experience trauma directly or be subject to vicarious trauma (e.g., witnessing death or abuse).[39] Both the frequency and severity of exposure to critical incidents are important factors in the likelihood of developing PTSD.[40] Research suggests that police officers exhibit higher rates of PTSD than the general population, with estimates of prevalence between 7% and 19%.[41] Many officers may also experience significant symptoms of posttraumatic stress, but do not meet the diagnostic criteria for PTSD; this level of stress can be described as a subsyndromal form of PTSD.[42]

Substance Use Disorders

Substance use disorders are defined as brain diseases whereby changes to the brain’s neural connections cause intense cravings for certain substances.[43] Symptoms include lack of control over substance use, social dysfunction, substance-related risk-taking behaviors, increased tolerance, and withdrawal symptoms.[44] Research is somewhat split on whether police officers use alcohol at rates higher than the general population. One study of Mississippi police officers found no statistically significant difference in the amount of alcohol consumed between police and the general population.[45] The study found that much like the general population, young single male officers exhibited more hazardous alcohol consumption behaviors. Additionally, a Florida study found that officers did not exhibit higher rates of problematic alcohol consumption than the general population.[46] Another study found that law enforcement officers who used alcohol as a coping strategy to deal with stress and trauma were at greater risk for suicidal ideation.[47]

There is little evidence to suggest that police officers regularly engage in drug use generally or as a result of work-related stress or trauma. The lack of research on this topic could be due to the inherently hidden nature of drug use.[48] One of the only pieces of research on this topic is a 1988 study that found that while on duty, 10% of a sample of police officers used non-prescription drugs and 20% used marijuana.[49] However, the sample size was less than 100 officers from one police department and was not intended identify generalizable implications. Additionally, the study did not determine the extent to which the officers used drugs or whether they suffered from substance use disorders.[50] While departmental drug testing could inform levels of police drug and alcohol use, this measure may be unreliable if police are alerted to the testing in advance and officers become familiar with the testing procedures, providing them opportunity to attempt to mask their substance use.[51] Additionally, large-scale drug testing across many jurisdictions would be needed to generalize the results.[52]

Police Officer Suicide

Research on police officer death by suicide is often difficult to conduct due to a lack of comprehensive available data.[53] While the FBI has begun collecting law enforcement suicide data as required by the Law Enforcement Suicide Data Collection Act (2020), this data is not yet publicly available.[54] The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports 24 workplace suicides by police personnel and six workplace suicides by correctional staff were logged between 2011 and 2014. These counts were high compared to other professions.[55] Blue H.E.L.P. is a non-profit organization that tracks law enforcement suicides using a variety of sources (e.g., online submissions, internet searches, collaboration with other organizations).[56] According to Blue H.E.L.P., 171 officer suicides were recorded in 2021, down from 186 in 2020.[57]

Some research indicates that the prevalence of suicide is higher among police officers than the general population. One study found that police officers had a 69% greater risk for suicide than those in the general employed population.[58] It is important to understand police suicide with other considerations in mind, such as demographics and risk factors unique to the police profession that may contribute to disproportionate suicide rates.[59] In addition, some argue that police suicides may be classified under “other causes of death” or as “undetermined” by coroners or medical examiners due to ambiguities in the death circumstances, suggesting the actual rate of suicides may be higher.[60]

Who Is At Risk?

Demographic studies reveal significant trends in police officer suicide. One study found that male officers had a similar rate of suicide compared to the rate within the general male population.[61] However, women officers had a rate that was four times higher than that of women in the general population.[62] Research also showed that White officers had higher risk for suicide than Black or Hispanic officers[63] Another study revealed PTSD and alcohol dependency were linked to a marked increase in suicidal ideation in police officers.[64] Other research indicated that officers who were single had a significantly higher risk for suicidal ideation than those who were married or in a committed relationship.[65]

Some research suggests that departmental factors (e.g., low levels of job satisfaction, organizational stress/strain, lack of managerial support) were associated with risk for suicidal ideation.[66] One study found that suicide rates were higher among police than correctional officers.[67] Some research shows that department size also may have an impact. One study found that police departments with 50 or fewer officers had a significantly higher annual suicide rate than large departments.[68] This may be due, in part to officers in small departments facing additional stress due to working alone, having fewer officers available for backup in dangerous situations, and lacking access to resources for addressing mental health issues.[69]

Longitudinal research indicates that retired officers may be less likely to commit suicide than working officers. One 50-year follow-up study found that working officers were about eight times more likely to commit suicide.[70] Some research suggests increases in age are significantly correlated with increased risk for suicide among women officers.[71]

Warning signs that someone may be contemplating suicide include feelings of hopelessness, anger, anxiety, mood swings, and reckless or risky behavior.[72] Warning signs unique to police officers may include entering dangerous situations without backup, threatening themselves or others, or flouting department rules.[73] One study found that 88% of law enforcement personnel who committed suicide used a firearm, which was much higher in comparison to the general population (27%).[74] A comparison study found that in New York City, officers had a rate of suicide twice as high as civilians; however, in London, where officers do not carry firearms, the rate was comparable to the civilian rate.[75] A study of the Israeli Defense Force found that when policy was changed and members were prohibited from bringing their weapons home on the weekends, suicides decreased by 40%.[76]

Protective Factors and Growth

Police officers may demonstrate greater resiliency to stress than the general public.[77] Some research suggests that having more benevolent worldviews, higher levels of extraversion, and lower levels of neuroticism are all protective factors that increase capacity for resilience to PTSD.[78] Additionally, police officers who demonstrate higher levels of positive emotion prior to active duty are more likely to demonstrate resilience to stress than officers with elevated levels of negative emotions.[79] To become a police officer, an individual must be cleared through psychological assessments to be considered fit for duty.[80] One study found that individuals with longer tenures of employment as police officers were less at risk for PTSD and suicidal ideation; this may be due to greater development of coping skills over time.[81] In fact, active coping styles (i.e., identifying sources of stress and developing a plan to overcome them) have been noted as effective protective factors at the individual level.[82] Other protective factors include strong social and intimate connections, peer support and counseling, and education.[83]

Post-traumatic Growth

Some officers experience positive outcomes after a traumatic experience. In such cases, trauma alters an individual’s worldview and leads to cognitive reprocessing, an experience known as post-traumatic growth.[84] Five aspects of post-traumatic growth include:

  • Growth related to new possibilities.
  • Ability to relate to others.
  • Increased sense of personal strength.
  • Greater appreciation for life.
  • Spiritual change.[85]

Research findings are mixed on the relationship between post-traumatic stress symptoms and post-traumatic growth.[86] Several studies examining the relationship between traumatic events and post-traumatic growth among police officers found symptoms of the two were significantly positively correlated.[87] Therefore, it appears that officers who experience trauma also experience post-traumatic growth.

Conclusion

Police officers are often exposed to violent or traumatic incidents that result in stress.[88] Stress among police officers can also be caused by less salient issues, such as organizational or workplace stressors, including discrimination, job dissatisfaction, and shift work.[89] Stress takes an emotional and physical toll on police officers, sometimes leading to PTSD, which is estimated to be higher among police officers than among those in the general population.[90]

Officers suffering from stress may turn to negative coping mechanisms, such as substance misuse, putting them at greater risk for suicidal ideation.[91] However, research on police suicide is limited or inconclusive.[92] In addition, practitioners have a limited understanding of the differences in stress between officers in rural versus urban jurisdictions. Finally, treatment services intended to assist police officers with stress and mental health issues require future evaluation in the effort to determine efficacy.[93]

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