Routine work environment stress and PTSD symptoms in police officers.

Full Abstract

This study examined the relationship between routine work environment stress and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms in a sample of police officers (N = 180) who were first assessed during academy training and reassessed 1-year later. In a model that included gender, ethnicity, traumatic exposure prior to entering the academy, current negative life events, and critical incident exposure over the last year, routine work environment stress was most strongly associated with PTSD symptoms. We also found that routine work environment stress mediated the relationship between critical incident exposure and PTSD symptoms and between current negative life events and PTSD symptoms. Ensuring that the work environment is functioning optimally protects against the effects of duty-related critical incidents and negative life events outside police service.

Author information

Author/s: Maguen, Shira (S); Metzler, Thomas J (TJ); McCaslin, Shannon E (SE); Inslicht, Sabra S (SS); Henn-Haase, Clare (C); Neylan, Thomas C (TC); Marmar, Charles R (CR);

Affiliation: San Francisco VA Medical Center, San Francisco, CA, USA. Shira.Maguen(-atsign-)va.gov

Journal and publication information

Publication Type: Historical Article; Journal Article

Journal: The Journal of nervous and mental disease (J Nerv Ment Dis), published in United States. (Language: eng)

Reference: 2009-Oct; vol 197 (issue 10) : pp 754-60

Dates: Created 2009/10/15; Completed 2009/10/29;

PMID: 19829204, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 10/29/2009, IMS Date: )

Sourced from the National Library of Medicine. Abstract text and other information may be subject to copyright.

External Links for this article
(including full text providers, if available):

Click Electronic Full-text Provider Links to see options for finding the electronic full text links to this article. Note there may be a subscription or fee required for access to the full text. See our FAQ for information on finding FREE full text articles.

This article may also be located in paper journal collections available in many libraries. Use the Journal and Publication Information above to find the full article.