Perceptions of Police Stress: An Empirical Study of Stressors and Coping Responses Among Police Personnel in India

• NCJ Number: 159004
• Journal: Indian Journal of Criminology Volume: 23 Issue: 1 Dated: (January 1995) Pages: 9-19
• Author(s): P Mathur
• Date Published: 1995
• Length: 11 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Research (Applied/Empirical)
• Language: English
• Country: India
• Note: US Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics, International Crime Statistics Program.

Annotation

Seventy-one gazetted officers (GO's) and 81 officers of other ranks (OR's) in Indian police forces completed a questionnaire assessing their awareness and experience of occupational stressors, and their means of coping with stress.

Abstract

The results showed that Indian police officers are exposed to moderately stressful situations in the workplace. Major stressors include incidents perceived to affect career development, incidents involving the use of weapons, the threat of personal injury or death of a colleague, and poor police management practices. GO's reported coping with stress by listening to music, exercising, spending time with their family or friends, and reading. OR's reported that they coped with stress by discussing the situation with a concerned person, smoking, praying, listening to music, and watching television. 6 tables and 20 references