Posted 06/20/2006

Study examines effect of job-related stress on police officers  

(USC Times) The nation's 700,000-plus police officers protect and save lives, but their own health and livelihood can be compromised by the chronic stress of their jobs, says an Arnold School of Public Health scientist. 

John Vena, chair of the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, is collaborating with John Violanti at the State University of New York-Buffalo on a study of 700 police officers and job-related stress.

The study, sponsored by the Department of Justice and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, will measure psychological, physiological, and other measures of stress, disease, and mental dysfunction.

"We need to have a better understanding of how stress affects law enforcement officers with regard to their fatigue and performance," Vena said. "It's a telling fact that more police officers die from their own guns--by suicide--than from others shooting at them."

Occupational stress is part of most jobs, but stress levels in law enforcement are particularly high as police officers often are witnesses to deadly force and violence and must interact with crime victims on a regular basis. Exposure to such stress can lead to Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), an acute form of stress related to traumatic event exposure. PTSD can, in turn, culminate in substance abuse, relationship difficulties, aggressive behaviors, and suicide.

Previous police stress studies in which Vena was an investigator revealed higher rates of cancer, Hodgkin's Disease, and suicide. Those findings and the data that will be forthcoming from Vena's current study are generalizable to any metropolitan police force, Vena said.

"As we study physical and psychological health outcomes and their effect on performance, we want to figure out what makes sense in regard to the length of shifts and rest periods in between shifts," Vena said. "It might be that some work schedules are better than others in terms of minimizing fatigue and the ability to respond effectively.

"We want to understand how all of that ties into fatigue and, more importantly, how to head off some of those problems," Vena said. "Counseling can mitigate some of the damage, but it can't eliminate all of the effects of stress."

In addition to the current study, which began in January, Vena has been an investigator in police officer stress research for the past 25 years.

For more information:

Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics

Law Enforcement Wellness Association Inc.