NCJ Number
132434
Date Published
1991
Length
39 pages
Annotation
This booklet provides information on the nature, causes, and consequences of alcohol and drug abuse among police officers and suggests ways to address the problem.
Abstract
The booklet notes that alcohol/drug abuse may be even more prevalent among police officers than in the general population. Social attitudes, peer pressure, and job stress may contribute to such abuse. Behaviors at work and at home both hide the problem and encourage its continuation. Police agencies must address the problem because it has destructive consequences for the profession as well as for the public in terms of such factors as job performance, health and safety, and officer morale. The symptoms of alcohol/drug abuse may be difficult to detect but certain characteristic behaviors generally accompany the abuse. Although the creation of awareness of the potential for the problem among officers is a first step, an effective approach to the problem requires a clear alcohol/drug policy for police agencies as well as the commitment and action of personnel at all agency levels. Treatment resources can be made available either through inhouse employee assistance programs or through community-based resources. The solution to alcohol/drug abuse, however, is in prevention. This occurs through personnel interaction that cultivates those attitudes and behaviors resistant to drug abuse. Appended resources for employee assistance programs and 23-item bibliography