Occupational Medicine 2015;65:466–473

Advance Access publication 4 June 2015 doi:10.1093/occmed/kqv060

Occupational stress, anxiety and coping strategies

in police officers
D. Acquadro Maran1, A. Varetto2, M. Zedda1 and V. Ieraci2
1
Department of Psychology, Università di Torino, Via Verdi 10, 10124 Torino, Italy, 2Città della Salute e della Scienza, Torino,
10126 Torino, Italy.
Correspondence to: D. Acquadro Maran, Department of Psychology, Università di Torino, Via Verdi 10, 10124 Torino, Italy.
Tel: +39 011 6702487; e-mail: [email protected]

Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/occmed/article/65/6/466/1420949 by guest on 30 November 2023

Background Studies on occupational stress have shown that police officers are exposed to stressful events more
often than other workers and this can result in impaired psychosocial well-being and physical health.
Aims To measure the level of stress experienced, the consequences in terms of anxiety and the coping
strategies adopted in a sample of police officers working in a large city in northern Italy.
Methods We used the Police Stress Questionnaire and the Distress Thermometer to measure occupational
stress, the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory to measure anxiety and the Brief COPE questionnaire to
measure coping strategies.
Results Six hundred seventeen police officers completed the questionnaire, a response rate of 34%.
Differences between genders, sectors and roles emerged, but overall the study population generally
demonstrated good use of positive coping strategies. Women in all operational service roles were
more vulnerable to both organizational and operational stressors than men (P < 0.001), while in the
interior department, men were more vulnerable to organizational stressors (P < 0.05).
Conclusions Our results suggest that for Italian police officers, training courses and support in dealing with
occupational stress should take into account gender, role and type of work. Tailored training courses
and support programmes could be useful and effective tools for preventing stress before it becomes
chronic.
Key words Occupational stress; police; stressors.

Introduction than colleagues with less experience [4], apparently due

to their having acquired more efficient coping strategies
Studies on occupational stress have shown that police and greater ability to cope with traumatic events (resil-
officers are exposed to acute and chronic stressful events ience) over time. Some authors have suggested that the
at work, which can result in impaired psychosocial well- experience of emotional trauma is reduced by the pos-
being and physical health [1,2]. Perceptions of stress have sibility of achieving a better position within the organ­
been investigated in relation to gender, role and sector of ization. Other research has shown that belonging to a
intervention. Researchers have found female police offic- particular occupational sector can affect perceptions of
ers to be exposed to more stressors, which may in part distress [5,6]. Abdollahi [7] reported that police officers
be explained by their attempts to gain acceptance and required to deal with cases of violence and those patrol-
win the esteem of colleagues and superiors within what ling the streets were more vulnerable to stress than offic-
has historically been a male-dominated profession. Berg ers in other sectors, such as those involved in training
et al. [3] found that policewomen reported higher stress new recruits.
levels than their male colleagues, although the latter Identifying mechanisms that make individuals less
reported greater exposure to serious incidents. Previous vulnerable to stressors is obviously important. Active and
studies investigating the relationship between stress and instrumental coping strategies (e.g. gaining social sup-
role have often produced discordant findings. Workers port) have been associated with good adaptation to trau-
with more years of service reported lower stress levels matic stress, while more passive or avoidant strategies

© The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society of Occupational Medicine.
All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: [email protected]
 D. Acquadro Maran ET AL.: STRESS, ANXIETY AND COPING STRATEGIES IN POLICE OFFICERS 467

(e.g. excessive alcohol intake) are often considered as person’s ability to balance general coping strategies
maladaptive, negative coping strategies. In general, strat- (How would you react if?) with those used in response
egies involving disengagement increase the likelihood of to the current stressful situation (How did you react
experiencing ongoing distress and of developing post- to specific stress situations?). Scores range from 1
traumatic stress disorder [8]. (I would not normally do this) to 4 (I would usually
The aim of this research was to investigate the stress- do this). The 28 items measure 14 coping strategies
ors perceived by a sample of police officers working in (Table 1) [15]. After completing the questionnaire,
a large city in northern Italy and to consider the effects the participants were asked to provide some personal
of gender, organizational role and sector of operation on information (gender and age) and job details (role and
the perception of stress. sector of employment).
The questionnaires were self-administered. After
obtaining the permission of the chief of police, an
Methods internal memo was sent to all executives informing
them of the study. On the dates agreed with the offic-

Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/occmed/article/65/6/466/1420949 by guest on 30 November 2023

The police force studied operates 7 days a week, 24 h a day
and the number of workers varies according to require- ers-in-charge and heads of department, all police offic-
ments (e.g. increased numbers during rush hour). Their ers were informed of the aims of the study and received
goals are timely intervention in emergencies and special- their copies of the questionnaires. Additional copies
ist interventions such as traffic patrols. We measured the were left for officers who were absent or not on duty
level of stress experienced by the target population, the that day. Participants were asked to complete the ques-
consequences in terms of anxiety and the coping strat- tionnaires and then place them in boxes that had been
egies adopted, using a questionnaire. The first page of left at the various places of work, specially designed to
the questionnaire included the presentation of the study guarantee privacy and anonymity. The questionnaires
and the privacy statement. We used the Police Stress were collected eight working days later. To increase the
Questionnaire and the Distress Thermometer to meas- number of participants, on the deadline date, a new
ure occupational stress, the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory box was left with a new deadline after a further seven
(STAI Y-1 and STAI Y-2) to measure anxiety and the working days.
Brief COPE questionnaire to measure coping strategies. Statistical analyses were performed using the statis-
The last page asked for socio-demographic data. tical software SPSS, version 18. Descriptive measures
The Police Stress Questionnaire consists of two (means ± SD) were calculated for all test variables for
scales (each of 20 items) designed to assess operational all groups of participants. For each sector of employ-
(PSQ-Op) and organizational (PSQ-Org) stress [9]. The ment, we identified subgroups in order to compare role
PSQ-Op measures stressors concerning, for instance, and gender. Chi-square tests were used to measure the
fatigue and health problems as a consequence of the differences between groups. Differences were consid-
job. The PSQ-Org measures stressors such as difficul- ered statistically significant if P < 0.05. Correlations
ties associated with red tape, lack of resources and staff were calculated to examine the relationship between
shortages. The Distress Thermometer is a single-item organizational and operational stressors, perceived
measure that assesses subjective stress on a visual ana- stress, anxiety scores and coping strategies for each
logue scale [10]. The scale ranges from 0 (not distressed) group of participants. Multiple linear regression analy-
to 10 (extremely distressed) and asks people to rate their sis was performed with the subject’s perception of dis-
level of distress during the previous week. As reported by tress as the dependent variable with gender, role, sector
Mitchell [11], most studies use a cut-off score of 4–5 to and coping strategies as explanatory variables. Ethical
indicate distress. The STAI Y-1 and Y-2 scales rate state clearance for the study was obtained from the ethics
anxiety (a temporary interruption in the emotional con- committee of this police force before the study began.
tinuum, characterized by a subjective feeling of tension The committee was composed of two unit managers
and associated with the arousal of the autonomic nervous (one with a degree in law and the other a clinical psy-
system) and trait anxiety (which denotes relatively stable chologist) and one supervisor (head of general affairs).
individual differences in anxiety proneness) [12]. Each of
the two scales comprises 20 items. Total scores can range Results
from 20 to 80, with 40 being the threshold value predic-
tive of anxiety symptoms. A rating scale defines the level Six hundred seventeen out of 1840 police officers com-
of severity: from 40 to 50 mild, 51 to 60 moderate and pleted the questionnaire, a response rate of 34%. The sam-
over 60 severe. ple consisted of patrol police officers directly responsible
The Brief COPE questionnaire is a 28-item measure for their actions who undertake a range of tasks depending
of coping responses under stressful conditions [13,14]. on the needs of the community (61%), non-commissioned
It evaluates the subtlest differences in coping and the officers supporting the work of officers (26%), officers
468 OCCUPATIONAL MEDICINE

Table 1. Psychometric properties of the study scales

Measure M SD SE 95% CI P α

LL UL

PSQ-Op 2.8 1.1 0.0 2.7 2.9 NS 0.92

PSQ-Org 3.2 1.3 0.0 3.1 3.3 NS 0.94
Distress Thermometer 3.8 2.6 0.1 3.6 4.0 <0.01 0.86
STAI Y-1 53.0 4.4 1.1 23.0 69.0 <0.05 0.84
STAI Y-2 53.0 5.9 1.0 22.0 65.0 <0.01 0.80
Brief COPE 0.78
Self-distraction 2.0 1.1 0.0 1.9 2.1 <0.001
Active coping 3.3 0.8 0.0 3.2 3.3 <0.01
Denial 1.4 0.6 0.0 1.3 1.4 NS

Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/occmed/article/65/6/466/1420949 by guest on 30 November 2023

Substance use 1.0 0.2 0.0 1.0 1.0 <0.001
Emotional support 2.0 0.8 0.0 1.9 2.0 NS
Instrumental support 2.4 0.8 0.0 2.3 2.4 NS
Behavioural disengagement 1.4 0.6 0.0 1.3 1.4 NS
Venting 2.3 0.7 0.0 2.3 2.4 NS
Positive reframing 2.8 0.8 0.0 2.7 2.8 NS
Planning 3.3 0.7 0.0 3.3 3.4 <0.05
Humour 2.2 0.8 0.0 2.1 2.3 <0.05
Acceptance 3.1 0.7 0.0 3.0 3.1 NS
Religion 1.9 1.0 0.0 1.8 2.0 NS
Self-blame 2.8 0.7 0.0 2.7 3.8 NS

M = mean; SD = standard deviation; SE = standard error; CI = confidence interval; LL = lower limit; UL = upper limit; NS = not statistically significant;
α = Cronbach’s alpha.

responsible for a service (9%), unit managers responsible officers were most susceptible to organizational stress-
for implementing and monitoring outcomes within a unit ors (respectively χ2 = 29.5, P < 0.05 and χ2 = 23.2, P
(2%) and executives or heads of department (n = 4; <1%) < 0.05).
[16]. The sectors were classified according to the type of Within the ID sector, mean scores revealed that the
work. The operational service (OS) comprises front line highest levels of operational stressors were reported by
police officers, responsible for enforcing the law, who male and female executives. Males were more vulner-
intervene directly in cases of assault, investigate crimes able to this type of stressor, with the exception of unit
and ensure public safety. The interior department (ID) managers. In this sector, males were more vulnerable to
contains those with organizational roles or responsible for organizational stressors (χ2 = 22.4, P < 0.05).
personnel management. The internal consistency and psy- Distress Thermometer results (Supplementary Tables
chometric characteristics of each scale used in the study 1 and 2, available as Supplementary data at Occupational
are presented in Table 1. Medicine Online) indicated that in the OS sector, female
Our sample’s overall PSQ-Op scores corresponded unit managers, non-commissioned officers and patrol
to a non-excessive range of stress, while the PSQ-Org police officers exceeded the cut-off score. In the ID sec-
revealed higher scores for stress levels (Table 1; χ2 = 46.4, tor, male non-commissioned officers and female patrol
P < 0.001). Participants’ answers ranged from 1 to 5 on police officers also exceeded the cut-off level.
both scales. The overall mean state and trait anxiety reached the
The comparison of subgroups (grouped by gender cut-off level for moderate anxiety (Supplementary Table 1,
and role in each sector) enabled us to observe any dif- available as Supplementary data at Occupational Medicine
ferences in levels and type of stress. Generally, mean Online). Patrol police officers reported higher levels of
scores for organizational stressors were higher than trait anxiety (χ2 = 39.1, P < 0.05). Male police patrol offic-
those for operational stressors. The PSQ-Op and PSQ- ers in the OS sector had the highest scores of all groups
Org findings revealed that women in all OS roles were for trait anxiety (χ2 = 26.3, P < 0.05). In the ID sector
more vulnerable to both organizational and opera- (Supplementary Table 2, available as Supplementary data
tional stressors (χ2 = 33.3, P < 0.001). In terms of role, at Occupational Medicine Online), female officers achieved
male and female patrol officers were found to be most the highest scores on STAI-Y1 (χ2 = 28.2, P < 0.05),
exposed to operational stressors (χ2 = 31.2, P < 0.05). while female non-commissioned officers achieved the
Female officers in general and male patrol police highest scores on STAI-Y2 (χ2 = 27.6, P < 0.05).
 D. Acquadro Maran ET AL.: STRESS, ANXIETY AND COPING STRATEGIES IN POLICE OFFICERS 469

Analysis of mean scores showed that active coping, plan- managers (χ2 = 4.1, P < 0.05), whilst patrol police officers
ning and acceptance strategies were those used the most in the ID used self-distraction (χ2 = 15.9, P < 0.05).
across genders, roles and sectors (Tables 2 and 3). In the OS Correlations for each group of participants were cal-
sector, patrol police officers and unit managers used more culated to examine the relationship between PSQ-Op,
venting (respectively χ2 = 20.9, P < 0.05 and χ2 = 19.6, PSQ-Org, the Distress Thermometer, STAI Y-1 and
P < 0.05) and emotional support (respectively χ2 = 14.1, Y-2 scores (Tables 4 and 5) and coping strategies. In
P < 0.05 and χ2 = 22.1, P < 0.001) as coping strategies the OS sector, male officers’ Distress Thermometer
than their colleagues in the same sector. Maladaptive strate- scores were significantly related to self-blame, r = 0.72,
gies, such as self-blame, were used in the OS sector by unit P < 0.001, and negation coping strategies, r = 0.78,

Table 2. Coping strategies adopted—operational service

Unit managers Officers Non-commissioned Patrol police

officers officers

Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/occmed/article/65/6/466/1420949 by guest on 30 November 2023

Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female
(n = 6), (n = 3), (n = 25), (n = 6), (n = 63), (n = 39), (n = 143), (n = 123),
M (SD) M (SD) M (SD) M (SD) M (SD) M (SD) M (SD) M (SD)

Self-distraction 1.9 (0.8) 2.3 (1.0) 1.6 (0.7) 1.9 (1.1) 1.9 (0.85) 2.2 (0.9) 1.9 (0.9) 2.0 (0.7)
Active coping 3.9 (0.2) 3.7 (0.3) 2.9 (1.0) 3.6 (0.5) 3.2 (0.89) 3.3 (0.8) 3.2 (0.7) 3.4 (0.7)
Denial 1.2 (0.4) 1.5 (0.5) 1.3 (0.6) 1.1 (0.2) 1.6 (0.65) 1.3 (0.5) 1.3 (0.5) 1.4 (0.6)
Substance use 1.0 (0.0) 1.0 (0.0) 1.0 (0.0) 1.0 (0.0) 1.0 (0.19) 1.0 (0.0) 1.1 (0.3) 1.0 (0.1)
Emotional support 2.0 (0.9) 2.0 (0.5) 1.7 (0.7) 2.0 (0.6) 1.7 (0.71) 2.1 (0.7) 1.9 (0.7) 2.2 (0.8)
Instrumental support 2.3 (0.6) 2.0 (0.9) 2.2 (0.7) 2.0 (1.0) 2.3 (0.91) 2.4 (0.8) 2.4 (0.8) 2.5 (0.8)
Behavioural disengagement 1.3 (0.6) 1.2 (0.3) 1.3 (0.5) 1.4 (0.6) 1.4 (0.57) 1.4 (0.6) 1.3 (0.5) 1.5 (0.7)
Venting 2.7 (0.8) 2.8 (0.6) 2.3 (0.8) 2.6 (0.5) 2.4 (0.7) 2.6 (0.7) 2.2 (0.7) 2.6 (0.7)
Positive reframing 2.8 (0.4) 3.0 (1.3) 2.7 (0.8) 3.2 (0.9) 2.8 (0.9) 2.9 (0.8) 2.7 (0.8) 2.8 (0.8)
Planning 3.9 (0.7) 4.0 (0.0) 3.5 (0.8) 3.9 (0.2) 3.3 (0.8) 3.4 (0.7) 3.3 (0.7) 3.4 (0.7)
Humour 2.6 (0.9) 2.3 (0.8) 2.2 (1.0) 2.3 (1.3) 2.2 (0.9) 2.1 (0.9) 2.2 (0.8) 2.2 (0.8)
Acceptance 3.5 (0.5) 3.7 (0.3) 3.0 (0.8) 3.7 (0.4) 3.0 (0.8) 3.7 (0.6) 3.0 (0.8) 3.0 (0.7)
Religion 1.9 (1.2) 1.7 (1.1) 1.7 (1.0) 1.5 (1.2) 1.2 (1.0) 2.4 (1.0) 1.7 (0.9) 1.9 (1.0)
Self-blame 3.1 (0.5) 3.5 (0.5) 2.7 (0.7) 2.7 (0.7) 2.8 (0.7) 2.7 (0.7) 2.7 (0.7) 2.9 (0.7)

M = mean; SD = standard deviation.

Table 3. Coping strategies adopted—interior division

Executives Unit managers Officers Non-commissioned Patrol police

officers officers

Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female
(n = 3), (n = 1), (n = 5), (n = 1), (n = 21), (n = 6), (n = 45), (n = 19), (n = 48), (n = 64),
M (SD) M (SD) M (SD) M (SD) M (SD) M (SD) M (SD) M (SD) M (SD) M (SD)

Self-distraction 1.9 (0.6) 1.0 (–) 2.7 (0.9) 1.0 (–) 1.3 (0.5) 1.8 (0.9) 2.0 (0.7) 2.7 (0.9) 1.9 (0.9) 2.1 (0.9)
Active coping 2.9 (1.3) 4.0 (–) 3.7 (0.3) 4.0 (–) 3.0 (0.9) 3.1 (0.9) 3.1 (0.9) 3.3 (0.9) 3.3 (0.7) 3.2 (0.7)
Denial 1.4 (0.7) 1.0 (–) 1.4 (0.2) 1.0 (–) 1.3 (0.6) 1.2 (0.3) 1.5 (0.7) 1.2 (0.5) 1.4 (0.6) 1.4 (0.6)
Substance use 1.3 (0.6) 1.0 (–) 1.0 (0.0) 1.0 (–) 1.0 (0.1) 1.0 (0.0) 1.1 (0.4) 1.0 (0.0) 1.0 (0.1) 1.0 (0.2)
Emotional support 1.4 (0.5) 2.0 (–) 2.0 (0.6) 2.5 (–) 1.7 (0.8) 1.7 (0.9) 1.8 (0.7) 2.2 (0.8) 2.1 (0.9) 2.1 (0.7)
Instrumental support 2.2 (0.3) 2.0 (–) 2.2 (0.9) 1.6 (–) 2.0 (0.9) 1.8 (0.7) 2.4 (0.7) 2.6 (0.7) 2.4 (0.8) 2.3 (0.8)
Behavioural disengagement 1.4 (0.7) 1.0 (–) 1.0 (0.0) 1.0 (–) 1.7 (0.9) 1.3 (0.4) 1.5 (0.7) 1.3 (0.4) 1.3 (0.6) 1.5 (0.6)
Venting 1.8 (0.3) 2.5 (–) 1.9 (0.5) 2.5 (–) 2.0 (0.6) 2.2 (0.7) 2.2 (0.7) 2.4 (0.7) 2.2 (0.7) 2.3 (0.8)
Positive reframing 3.5 (0.6) 3.1 (–) 2.7 (0.3) 2.5 (–) 2.4 (0.7) 2.7 (1.1) 2.8 (1.0) 2.9 (0.9) 2.6 (0.8) 2.7 (0.8)
Planning 3.1 (1.1) 4.0 (–) 3.2 (0.6) 4.0 (–) 2.9 (0.8) 3.6 (0.7) 3.4 (0.7) 3.4 (0.9) 3.3 (0.7) 3.1 (0.7)
Humour 1.9 (0.2) 2.0 (–) 2.1 (1.3) 2.0 (–) 2.2 (0.8) 2.7 (0.5) 2.2 (0.8) 1.9 (0.6) 2.3 (0.7) 2.2 (0.8)
Acceptance 3.0 (0.7) 3.0 (–) 2.7 (0.5) 4.0 (–) 2.8 (0.7) 3.8 (0.3) 3.2 (0.7) 3.2 (0.8) 3.1 (0.8) 3.1 (0.7)
Religion 2.0 (1.4) 1.5 (–) 1.7 (1.0) 3.0 (–) 1.7 (0.9) 1.5 (0.8) 2.2 (1.0) 2.0 (0.9) 1.8 (1.0) 1.9 (0.9)
Self-blame 2.1 (0.7) 3.0 (–) 2.6 (0.5) 4.0 (–) 2.6 (0.7) 2.6 (0.9) 2.8 (0.6) 2.3 (0.8) 2.9 (0.8) 2.8 (0.7)

M = mean; SD = standard deviation.

470 OCCUPATIONAL MEDICINE

Table 4. Summary of correlations for scores in PSQ-Op, PSQ-Org, distress thermometer, STAI Y-1, and Y-2—operational service

Measure 1 2 3 4 5

Unit managers—male
1. PSQ-Op
2. PSQ-Org 0.95*
3. Thermometer 0.31 0.57
4. STAI Y-1 0.93 0.31 0.46
5. STAI Y-2 0.98* 0.87 0.43 0.85
Unit managers—female
1. PSQ-Op
2. PSQ-Org 0.34 –
3. Thermometer 0.50 0.51
4. STAI Y-1 0.28 0.99 0.32

Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/occmed/article/65/6/466/1420949 by guest on 30 November 2023

5. STAI Y-2 0.28 0.99 0.21 0.28
Officers—male
1. PSQ-Op
2. PSQ-Org 0.64
3. Thermometer 0.33 0.66
4. STAI Y-1 0.45 0.18 0.48
5. STAI Y-2 0.73* 0.49 0.66 0.77
Officers—female
1. PSQ-Op
2. PSQ-Org 0.52
3. Thermometer 0.58 0.89
4. STAI Y-1 0.41 0.40 0.80
5.STAI Y-2 0.51 0.22 0.86 0.58
Non-commissioned officers—male
1. PSQ-Op
2. PSQ-Org 0.69
3. Thermometer 0.38 0.40
4. STAI Y-1 0.28 0.33 0.38
5. STAI Y-2 0.52 0.55 0.58 0.58
Non-commissioned officers—female
1. PSQ-Op
2. PSQ-Org 0.71*
3. Thermometer 0.46 0.41
4. STAI Y-1 0.28 0.43 0.69
5. STAI Y-2 0.29 0.40 0.72* 0.76*
Patrol police officers—male
1. PSQ-Op
2. PSQ-Org 0.73*
3. Thermometer 0.52 0.53
4. STAI Y-1 0.43 0.40 0.60
5. STAI Y-2 0.47 0.38 0.45 0.71
Patrol police officers—female
1. PSQ-Op
2. PSQ-Org 0.78*
3. Thermometer 0.50 0.45
4. STAIY1 0.56 0.58 0.55
5. STAIY2 0.49 0.44 0.59 0.62

* P < 0.001.

P < 0.001. In the ID sector, male executives’ PSQ- significant correlation was found between active cop-
Org scores were significantly correlated with religion ing and venting (r = 0.80, P < 0.001) and between
coping strategy, r = 0.99, P < 0.01. For male officers active coping and planning (r = 0.76, P < 0.001) cop-
in the ID sector, their planning coping was correlated ing strategies.
with active coping, r = 0.74, P < 0.001. In addition, for Multiple linear regression analysis showed that
female non-commissioned officers in the ID sector, a perceived distress was correlated with self-distraction
 D. Acquadro Maran ET AL.: STRESS, ANXIETY AND COPING STRATEGIES IN POLICE OFFICERS 471

Table 5. Summary of correlations for scores in PSQ-Op, PSQ-Org, distress thermometer, STAI Y-1 and Y-2—interior department

Measure 1 2 3 4 5

Executives—male
1. PSQ-Op
2. PSQ-Org 0.99*
3. Thermometer 0.87 0.86
4. STAI Y-1 0.51 0.47 0.85
5. STAI Y-2 0.51 0.47 0.85 0.99
Unit managers—male
1. PSQ-Op
2. PSQ-Org 0.91
3. Thermometer 0.74 0.69
4. STAI Y-1 0.40 0.60 0.15

Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/occmed/article/65/6/466/1420949 by guest on 30 November 2023

5. STAI Y-2 0.40 0.61 0.37 0.40
Officers—male
1. PSQ-Op
2. PSQ-Org 0.86*
3. Thermometer 0.12 0.01
4. STAI Y-1 0.35 0.23 0.46
5. STAI Y-2 0.51 0.42 0.24 0.80
Officers—female
1. PSQ-Op
2. PSQ-Org 0.81
3. Thermometer −0.17 −0.20
4. STAI Y-1 −0.14 −0.44 0.77
5. STAI Y-2 −0.12 −0.40 0.77 0.40
Non-commissioned officers—male
1. PSQ-Op
2. PSQ-Org 0.79*
3. Thermometer 0.51 0.31
4. STAI Y-1 0.31 0.29 0.61
5. STAI Y-2 0.26 0.23 0.55
Non-commissioned officers—female
1. PSQ-Op
2. PSQ-Org 0.78*
3. Thermometer 0.62 0.63
4. STAI Y-1 0.33 0.34 0.10
5. STAI Y-2 0.58 0.78 0.19 0.51
Patrol police officers—male
1. PSQ-Op
2. PSQ-Org 0.77*
3. Thermometer 0.28 0.34
4. STAI Y-1 0.19 0.25 0.47
5. STAI Y-2 0.29 0.26 0.51 0.65
Patrol police officers—female
1. PSQ-Op
2. PSQ-Org 0.71*
3. Thermometer 0.35 0.32
4. STAI Y-1 0.12 0.13 0.33
5. STAI Y-2 0.15 0.09 0.14 0.13

*P < 0.001.

(P < 0.01), negation (P < 0.05) and self-blame Discussion

(P < 0.05) and negatively associated with humour
(P < 0.01) and planning (P < 0.05) coping strategies In the OS, our findings showed that general levels of dis-
(R2 = 0.14, F = 4.84, P < 0.001). The analysis found tress were higher among female officers, non-commis-
no correlations with the independent variables gender, sioned officers and patrol police officers than among their
role and sector. male colleagues in the same roles. Females in all roles
472 OCCUPATIONAL MEDICINE

exhibited higher levels of organizational stress and dis- general psychological distress [21], which can therefore
tress than males. These results are particularly interesting be regarded as a protective factor against anxiety and
because they differ from those reported in previous stud- organizational distress.
ies involving policewomen. Bowler et al. [17] found that This study has some limitations to be considered.
female police officers in low-ranking roles who are faced First, the low response rate and lack of information
with violent situations and exposed to human suffering about non-respondents will inevitably limit our conclu-
were the most vulnerable category and at the highest risk sions by preventing any further analysis of responder
of distress, whereas in this investigation, the stressors were bias. Non-response may possibly have been associated
of a more organizational than operational nature and dis- with increased negativity about distress issues [22] or
tress was linked to the actual job performed within the with denial of the problem. Moreover, the overall state-
organization. A difference between genders emerged with trait anxiety levels that emerged in this study are indica-
respect to the strategies used. As shown by data result- tive of unease and can potentially give rise to a variety of
ing from correlations, male officers showed traits of anxi- psychological problems and hinder the adoption of use-
ety that influenced the way they perceived the difficulties ful coping strategies. However, depressive symptoms and

Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/occmed/article/65/6/466/1420949 by guest on 30 November 2023

associated with their role and their professional context. post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), which according
They reacted to an increase in stressors by adopting cop- to the literature are associated with this population, were
ing strategies such as self-blame and negation: on the not investigated in depth in this study. A second limit
one hand, they blamed themselves for their unease (for is the absence of any comparison with another popula-
instance, attributing this to their inability to deal efficiently tion engaged in the same type of work, but operating in
with the situation) and on the other, they tried to dimin- another context.
ish the sense of responsibility by denying that the problem This research may provide the means to help police
existed. This may be due to the fact that male officers with organizations find ways to limit stressors and their con-
more years of service become disillusioned and are thus at sequences. In particular, a greater understanding of
greater risk of suffering from chronic distress [18]. Male police stress may provide opportunities to develop bet-
operational unit managers exhibited operational stress ter training courses to improve stress management skills.
when faced with situations characterized by high levels These courses may increase officers’ abilities to cope
of organizational stress, and problems associated with with psychologically arduous situations (e.g. self-efficacy
organizational aspects led to high levels of unease in per- enhancement programmes) and the severe psychologi-
forming their functions. This was particularly evident in cal distress that can often undermine social function-
individuals prone to trait anxiety. More in-depth research ing (e.g. trauma-focused cognitive behavioural therapy).
is needed to investigate the use of maladaptive strategies The results from this study suggest that training courses
among this population: for instance alcohol may be con- and support for Italian police officers must necessarily
sumed to reduce anxiety without associating its misuse take into account not only the stressors that characterize
with negative consequences [19]. police work but also the gender, role and type of work
In the ID, male executives exhibited operational and in which the officer is involved. Tailored training courses
organizational distress, using religion as a coping strat- and support programmes could be useful and effective
egy. Male officers exhibited organizational and opera- tools for preventing stress before it becomes chronic.
tional distress and implemented adaptive planning
strategies. Female non-commissioned officers exhib- Key points
ited the same operational and organizational distress
but used an active venting coping strategy; they also •• In this study, female and male police officers suf-
used the self-distraction strategy more than male offic- fered from distress caused by different stressors.
ers in the same sector. Male non-commissioned offic- The consequences and coping strategies adopted
ers and male and female patrol police officers exhibited differed according to gender, role and sector of
both organizational and operational distress. We con- operation.
sider these findings interesting in that they differ from •• Female police officers in all roles exhibited higher
those of previous research in which organizational levels of organizational stress and distress than
stress emerged as the principal reason for distress [20]. their male counterparts.
The investigation of variables such as gender, role and •• Tailored training courses and support programmes
sector of work enabled us to better understand the could be useful and effective tools for preventing
sources of distress in this population. stress before it becomes chronic.
In multiple regression analysis, a negative association
with coping strategies humour and planning was noted
Conflicts of interest
for the variable distress level: the use of good strate-
gies is traditionally associated with a reduced risk of None declared.
 D. Acquadro Maran ET AL.: STRESS, ANXIETY AND COPING STRATEGIES IN POLICE OFFICERS 473

References 12. Spielberger CD. State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for Adults:

Form Y Review Set—Manual, Test, Scoring, Key. Redwood
1. Lucas T,  Weidner N, Janisse J. Where does work stress come City, CA: Mind Garden, Inc, 1983.
from? A generalizability analysis of stress in police officers. 13. Carver CS. You want to measure coping but your proto-
Psychol Health 2012;27:1426–1447. col’s too long: consider the brief COPE. Int J Behav Med
2. Magnavita N, Garbarino S. Is absence related to work 1997;4:92–100.
stress? A repeated cross-sectional study on a special police 14. Conti L. Repertorio delle scale psicometriche di valutazione
force. Am J Ind Med 2013;56:765–775. [Directory of Psychometric Scales of Assessment]. Firenze:
3. Berg AM, Hem E, Lau B, Håseth K, Ekeberg O. Stress SEE, 1999.
in the Norwegian police service. Occup Med (Lond) 15. Louw GJ, Viviers A. An evaluation of a psychosocial stress
2005;55:113–120. and coping model in the police work context. SA J Ind
4. White JW, Lawrence PS, Biggerstaff C, Grubb TD. Psychol 2010;36:Art. #442.
Factors of stress among police officers. Crim Justice Behav 16. Delvino F. Manuale di organizzazione e gestione della poli-
1985;12:111–128. zia locale [Handbook of Local Police Organization and
5. Slate RN, Johnson WW. Stressors experienced by state and Management]. Macerata: Halley Editrice, 2008.

Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/occmed/article/65/6/466/1420949 by guest on 30 November 2023

federal probation officers. In: Miller MK, Bornstein BH, 17. Bowler RM, Han H, Gocheva V et al. Gender differences
eds. Stress, Trauma, and Wellbeing in the Legal System. New in probable posttraumatic stress disorder among police
York: Oxford University Press, 2013; 197–215. responders to the 2001 World Trade Center terrorist attack.
6. Arnetz BB, Arble E, Backman L, Lynch A, Lublin A. Assessment Am J Ind Med 2010;53:1186–1196.
of a prevention program for work-related stress among urban 18. van der Velden PG, Rademaker AR,Vermetten E, Portengen
police officers. Int Arch Occup Environ Health 2013;86:79–88. MA, Yzermans JC, Grievink L. Police officers: a high-risk
7. Abdollahi MK. Understanding police stress research. group for the development of mental health disturbances?
J Forensic Psychol Pract 2002;2:1–24. A cohort study. BMJ Open 2013;3:e00172.
8. Hennig-Fast K, Werner NS, Lermer R et al. After facing 19. Castro FG, Barrera M, Mena LA, Aguirre KM. Culture
traumatic stress: brain activation, cognition and stress and alcohol use: historical and sociocultural themes
coping in policemen. J Psychiatr Res 2009;43:1146–1155. from 75 years of alcohol research. J Stud Alcohol Drugs
9. McCreary DR, Thompson MM. Development of two reli- 2014;17:36–49.
able and valid measures of stressors in policing: the opera- 20. Suresh RS, Anantharaman RN, Angusamy A, Ganesan J.
tional and organizational police stress questionnaires. Int J Sources of job stress in police work in a developing coun-
Stress Manage 2006;13:494–518. try. Int J Business Manage 2013;8:102.
10. Roth AJ, Kornblith AB, Batel-Copel L, Peabody E, Scher 21. Elliott DM, Guy JD. Mental health professionals
HI, Holland JC. Rapid screening for psychologic distress versus non-mental-health professionals: childhood
in men with prostate carcinoma: a pilot study. Cancer trauma and adult functioning. Prof Psychol Res Pract
1998;82:1904–1908. 1993;24:83–90.
11. Mitchell AJ. Pooled results from 38 analyses of the accu- 22. Collins PA, Gibbs AC. Stress in police officers: a study
racy of distress thermometer and other ultra-short meth- of the origins, prevalence and severity of stress-related
ods of detecting cancer-related mood disorders. J Clin symptoms within a county police force. Occup Med (Lond)
Oncol 2007;25:4670–4681. 2003;53:256–264.