Protecting Against Stress and Trauma: Research Lessons for Law Enforcement - Next Steps

• NCJ Number: 253969
• Author(s): Howard Spivak; Christopher J. A. Scallon; Dan Grupe; John Violanti; Wendy Stiver
• Date Published: October 2019
• Length: 1 page
• Agencies: NIJ
• Publication Type: Technical Assistance; Instructional Material (Programmed)

Annotation

This 14-minute video - one of four videos from a Research for the Real World seminar on protecting law enforcement officers against the adverse effects of stress and trauma - presents a panel discussion of next steps in research and practice related to helping law enforcement personnel address occupational stress and trauma.

Abstract

One area discussed as needing more attention from research and practice activities is the impact on an officer's family of his/her job-related stress. The focus of the discussion is on the kinds of family interactions and types of family-focused resources that should be provided by law enforcement agencies and community healthcare personnel. Another area suggested for research is how various types of calls for service may impact an officer's mental health and the kinds of health services for officers that can counter specific stressful experiences. Another area mentioned as needing more research pertains to how law enforcement agency policies and practices may aggravate or relieve officer stress. Also mentioned in the discussion of next steps is how officer testing of various physiological factors can reveal mental health issues that need treatment. Another concern discussed is the prevalence of officer suicide and the effectiveness of various prevention measures. Effective ways to increase officer acceptance and accessibility of mental health services is also an important next step for researcher-practitioner partnerships.