Sources and severity of stress in a Southwestern police department

Policing is a stressful occupation. Most research examining police stress focuses solely on patrol officers, and often focuses on black and white officers only. Further, organizational sources of stress tend to be more important for police officers generally.

To explore sources and severity of stress in a predominately Hispanic, mid-sized, Southwestern police department.

A cross-sectional study of 147 police officers of all ranks was conducted. A modified version of the Police Stress Survey (PSS) was administered during daily briefings. Logistical regression models were utilized to examine predictors of stress based on gender, race/ethnicity, rank and tenure.

Overall, occupational stressors proved more prominent than organizational stressors, contrary to previous research. Additionally, race/ethnicity was predictive of both total stress and occupational stress; rank was predictive of organizational stress; and tenure in law enforcement was predictive of occupational stress.

The sources of stress that impact police officers may be shifting as the climate surrounding law enforcement changes. What is stressful for officers depends on the race/ethnicity, rank and tenure of the officer within the organizational structure. Potential interventions designed to alleviate stress should be mindful of the variety of needs within any given department.