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Abstract

Police officers face the occupational hazard of repeated exposure to traumatic stressors. Additionally, as for employees of any large organization, they are subjected to routine organizational stressors in theworkplace. Although police work is generally believed to be inherently stressful, very little is known of the impact of the police organization upon officers’ psychological
well-being. This study evaluated the impact on psychological health of both traumatic and organizational police experiences. Baseline measures of prior traumatic experiences, and psychological health were established at point of entry for 512 police recruits. One year later, the impact of police related trauma and organizational events was assessed. Multiple regression analyses
determined that while both traumatic events and organizational stressors affected psychological distress, organizational stressors had the strongest effect, including the exacerbation of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder symptoms. The main implication of these
findings is that traumatic stress is a hazard for police officers, but the importance of daily organizational stressors must also be taken into account.

Item Type:	Article
Authors/Creators:	Huddleston, L and Stephens, C and Paton, D
Keywords:	Post traumatic stress disorder, police stress, traumatic stress, organizational hassles
Journal or Publication Title:	Work
Publisher:	IOS Press
ISSN:	1051-9815
Item Statistics:	View statistics for this item

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