Female Police Officers Research Articles

Use of employee assistance programs to manage stress in policing: the effects of perceived adequacy of assistance and opportunity for promotion

PurposeThis study investigates the relationship between police officer's willingness to use Employee Assistance Program (EAP) and their perceptions about stress and help-seeking in policing, considering the effect of gender and ethnicity in this association.Design/methodology/approachA survey of 431 Illinois police officers is used to measure officer's perceptions about help-seeking and organizational stressors. The conditional PROCESS modeling (Hayes, 2012) was employed to analyze the hypothesized mediation model. The ANOVA test was used to determent the effect of gender and ethnicity on organizational stressors in policing.FindingsFindings suggest police officer's willingness to use EAP is shaped by the perceived negative effect of stress on promotion through the mediator, confidence in their departments to receive adequate assistance, with noticeable gender and ethnic differences. The analysis demonstrated that female police officers feel stressed because of unfair promotional opportunities and poor relationships with supervisors. Female police officers are less willing to apply for the EAP services to mitigate stress than male police officers. The findings reveal that ethnicity is a significant predictor of the police officers' willingness to apply for EAP services to mitigate stress.Research limitations/implicationsThe current study is limited by its focus on only one police department located in the Illinois, USA. This may limit the generalizability of the results. The cross-sectional nature of data used to draw conclusions and variation in departments' characteristics and compositions could influence results.Practical implicationsThe research has practical implications for those who are interested to understand organizational stressors and perceptions on help-seeking in policing. This study provides suggestions for police administrators to make effort in creating more sensitive working environment to reduce stressors for female police officers and representatives of ethnic groups.Originality/valueThe research unveils the significance of officer's confidence in their departments in modifying their willingness to use EAP, revealing the effect of organizational stressors on confidence. The study adds empirical evidence to existing research on impact of gender and ethnicity on their willingness to use EAP.

“Little Red Sandals”: female police officers' lived experience of investigating sexual violence

PurposeAgainst a background of increasing workload and external criticism, the purpose of this paper is to expose the indelible memories impressed on female police officers dedicated to investigating allegations of rape and sexual violence.Design/methodology/approachParticipants (n = 15) were female police officers working in a specialist sexual offences investigation unit in a large English Metropolitan Police Force. A semi-structured interview was employed to elicit their experiences as an example of “extreme” police work. Interpretative phenomenological analysis was used to develop themes elucidating psychological and physical impacts on officers and their coping strategies.FindingsPersonal consequences were framed within the conceptualisation of secondary trauma. Emergent findings revealed profound and lasting vicarious traumatisation. Participants reported feelings of depression, anxiety, suicidal ideation, intrusive imagery, altered beliefs and cognitions as well as disrupted intimacy with partners. Coping adaptations included sensory shutdown, avoidance, dissociation and a reduction in victim care.Practical implicationsThe findings support the need to consider occupational interventions to address risk factors associated with caseload, tenure, personal experience of neglect (e.g. in childhood), and the permeability of work and family boundaries for such exceptional policing tasks.Originality/valueThe paper contributes to a nascent literature on stress in “extreme” police work. The theoretical contribution is the focus on the emotional and physical aspects of vicarious trauma, which have been less well understood than cognitive aspects. The practice implications stress the need for targeted support activities given the profound psychological consequences of prolonged exposure to distressing material.

Female Moscow Police Officers’ Emotional Reactions Features during Service in the COVID-19 Pandemic Emergency Conditions

The COVID-19 pandemic was an extreme situation that had a traumatic impact on psychosocial groups that performed their official duties in contact with the infected and sick, including in the gender aspect. Police officers were widely involved in anti-epidemic measures to protect order and citizens safety during the COVID-19 pandemic. The aim of the study is to identify the emotional reactions features in female police officers - the Moscow police employees, carrying serving as public order guards in the COVID-19 pandemic emergency conditions. It is shown that female police officers, in contrast to male police officers, in emergency conditions of the COVID-19 pandemic, showed greater neuro-psychic adaptability to stressful situations, despite increased situational and personal anxiety. When serving in crowded places, they showed anxiety not about their own health, but because of fears about the relatives possibility infecting. It is shown that it is expedient to develop differentiated psychosocial support personality-oriented programs for police officers, taking into account gender characteristics during medical and biological emergencies.

Metabolic Syndrome in Female Police Officers and Female Office Workers: A Cross-Sectional Study in Occupations with Different Physical Activities.

IntroductionIncrease in the prevalence of metabolic syndrome (MetS) has become a worldwide major health problem. So far, there are limited data about the impact of occupation types and the development of metabolic risks in females. This study aimed to compare the metabolic risk profiles and in two extremely different female occupational groups: police officers (PO) and office workers (OW).MethodsThe prospective study included a total number of 97 female subjects (37 POs and 60 OWs) from Germany. Anthropometric characteristics, metabolic risk parameters as well as laboratory parameters were taken. The diagnosis of MetS was based on the criteria of the International Diabetes Federation (IDF).ResultsFemale OWs presented a high prevalence of obesity, shown in average abdominal waist circumference (85.3 ± 14.5 cm) above the threshold of ≥80 cm recommended by the IDF to define abdominal obesity. Sixty percent of OWs versus 25% of POs had an abnormal abdominal waist circumference. Concerning other metabolic risk factors (HDL, triglycerides, body mass index, blood pressure) no significant differences were found, but a tendency toward a higher prevalence of abnormal values is presented in OWs than POs. MetS was detected in almost 8% of OWs as compared with 5% in POs (p = 0.705).ConclusionIn an international comparison, German female POs showed one of the lowest prevalence of MetS, whereas the prevalence in OWs is equal to results in other countries. In conclusion, especially the occupational type of female OWs presented elevated factors, that are associated with increased metabolic risk. There is a relevant need for further prospective studies with larger sample sizes in female workers to determine the influence between occupational type and metabolic system.

Police Perfection: Examining the Effect of Trait Maximization on Police Decision-Making.

Police officers around the world must often select between equally unappealing, uncertain courses of action in an attempt to achieve the best outcome. Despite the immense importance of such decisions, there remains a lack of understanding in the study of individual differences in police decision-making. Here, using a sample of senior police officers recruited from decision-making training events across the United Kingdom (n = 96), we used the Least-worst Uncertain Choice Inventory For Emergency Responses (LUCIFER) to measure the effect of maximization on both domain-specific (police) and domain-general (military) decisions. In line with a wealth of research on traditional “consumer” decisions, we found that police officers who were “maximizers” found decisions more difficult. Gender and previous military experience also influenced the process of decision-making. Specifically, police officers with military experience took more time to assess the situation but were faster to choose a course of action and commit to it. Female police officers also were slower to assess the situation. As recent events show, the outcomes of police decisions have significant consequences for the public, the officers involved, the police force as a whole, and the wider population, yet psychological research has yet to fully explore the role of individual differences in how such decisions are made. While this study does not seek to identify factors associated with “good” or “better” decision-makers, it provides strong support for the need to factor in perspectives of the individual when creating theory, or applied tools, in support of police decision-making.

I’m Still in the Blue Family: Gender and Professional Identity Construction in Police Officers

With an increase in gender equality policies and gender balance targets within traditionally male professions, organisations such as the police service are experiencing changing demographics. How these shifts influence the construction of professional identity is unclear. Drawing on focus group data, this study aimed to explore identity construction of police officers across gender using a thematic analysis method. Two themes related to identity construction were found to be common to both male and female police officers: ‘Working within a blue family’ and ‘Being a copper is a job for life’. However, the way in which these themes were articulated differed between male and female officers, with male officers experiencing more difficulty than female officers in terms of positioning their identity within the evolving police culture. The findings from this study have implications for gender policies in the workforce as they suggest that men may experience more difficulty than women in adjusting to a gender-diverse workforce, and that professional identity within traditionally male professions is more complex and nuanced than what was previously assumed.

여성경찰관의 직무수행 중 불인정 경험 및 구조적 차별 경험이 조직만족에 미치는 영향

여성경찰관의 직무수행 중 불인정 경험 및 구조적 차별 경험이 조직만족에 미치는 영향

Sex Differences in Sleep and Wakefulness of Police Officers Working Shifts: Evidence from a Field Study

Background: Women appear more vulnerable to shift work than men, but field studies are lacking. We assessed the impact of sex and hormonal contraceptives [HC] use on the homeostatic and diurnal variation of sleep, sleepiness, alertness, and psychomotor performance in police officers working shifts. Methods: A total of 56 males and 20 females (11 using HC, 6 not using HC, and 3 with unknown use of HC) aged 32·0 ± 5·3 years, participated in an observational study throughout a month-long work cycle, including morning, evening, night shifts, and rest days. Participants wore an actigraph, filled out a sleep and work log, answered questionnaires (Samn-Perelli, KSS, Visual Analogue Scales, ~5/day), and completed 5-min Psychomotor Vigilance Tasks (PVT, ~2/day). Linear mixed-effects models were used to analyze the effects of group, time awake and time-of-day on fatigue, sleepiness, alertness, mood and PVT measures. Findings: All parameters significantly varied with time awake and time-of-day. Female police officers were more fatigued and sleepier than males, both with time awake and across the 24-h day. These variations were similar between non-HC females and the other groups, whereas, compared to males, HC females were more fatigued and less alert, both with time awake and across the 24-h day, and sleepier with time awake. Interpretation: Sex differences on sleep and wakefulness parameters were mainly explained by hormonal contraceptives use. Sex and hormonal parameters are critical factors that must be considered in occupational medicine as well as in future laboratory and field studies on shift workers and circadian rhythms. Funding: Institut de recherche Robert-Sauve en sante et en securite du travail (operating grant 2013-0046). Fonds de Recherche du Quebec–Sante. Conflict of Interest: DBB provides conferences and legal expert advices on various shift work-related cases. Ethical Approval: The protocol was approved by the Douglas Mental Health University Institute Research Ethics Board and was within the ethical standards of the Declaration of Helsinki.

SEX DIFFERENCES IN REFLECTIVE PROCESSESS AMONG POLICE OFFICERS

The article presents the results of the theoretical and methodological substantiation and empirical verification of the approach to investigation sex differences in representation of reflection among police officers. The object of study is reflection. The research deals with sex differences in reflective processess among police officers. Positive (systemic reflection, self-regulation, meaning-in-life) and negative (quasi-reflection, introspection) varieties of the phenomenon are analyzed. Eighty participants (40 male and 40 female) aged from 20 to 45 years reported in a survey their own level of reflection, self-regulation, self-attitude and meaning-in-life. The research revealed that the female and male groups of police officers differ on the variables of systemic reflection, quasi-reflection, introspection, activity reflection, self-regulation, self-attitude, reflectivity and meaningfulness of life. Female police officers prone to report higher level of reflection (systemic reflection as well as quasi-reflection and introspection) comparing to male representatives. Activity reflection of women is focused on the process, while men tend to concentrate on the result. The original research hypothesis was confirmed and the findings demonstrate that there are sex differences in reflective processes among police officers. The practical value of the work lies in the explanation of sex differences in reflective processes among police officers. The findings open up new prospects in application of the results in psychodiagnostics, preventive and corrective interventions to assist police officers, in the field of psychological counseling and training

Пути и способы совершенствования общей физической подготовки сотрудников органов внутренних дел России женского пола 35-40 лет

The work is devoted to the study of effective ways to improve the General physical training of female employees of the internal Affairs bodies of Russia 35-40 years old. The authors identified the main ways and methods of organizing General physical training. The authors proved that the training process of women, especially older age groups, can not be identical to men's training. When conducting women's training, it is necessary to strictly take into account their anatomical, physiological and psychological characteristics. Taking into account body types when planning physical training of female police officers 35-40 years old will improve performance, and also contribute to the systematic formation of adaptation of those engaged in stress. The effective organization of physical training of women employees of older age groups is influenced by the size and nature of loads, proper planning of periods of employment and rest, means and methods of development of physical qualities: strength, speed, dexterity, endurance.

Сравнительная характеристика требований к физической подготовке сотрудников полиции женского пола России и зарубежных государств

This work is devoted to topical issues of physical training of female police officers in Russia. The work is devoted to the study of the main factors that contribute to the admission of female police officers to the service in the police Department of Russia and foreign countries. The features of training sessions for women police officers are revealed. The authors identified the main requirements for physical training of employees of internal Affairs agencies in Russia and foreign countries. A comprehensive analysis of the basic requirements for the level of physical training of police officers in Russia and foreign countries.

Workplace Harassment, Work Overload, and Psychological Distress in Female Police Officers

Current correlational study was carried out to assess the relationship among workplace harassment, work overload, and psychological distress in female police officers. It was hypothesized that there would be a positive relationship between workplace harassment, work overload, and psychological distress. The sample comprised of 100 female police officers with age range from 21- 40 years selected from different police stations and training centers of Lahore by using purposive sampling technique. Self-translated Urdu version of Negative Acts Questionnaire (Einarsen, Hoel, & Notelaers, 2009), Reilly’s Role Overload Scale (Reilly, 1982), and Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (Kessler et al., 2009) were used to assess study variables. Correlational analysis revealed that workplace harassment was positively correlated with work overload and psychological distress. Moreover, regression analysis revealed that workplace harassment was a positive predictor for psychological distress. The study has implications in police force to develop harassment control strategies and effective work hours to reduce psychological distress and promote healthy work environment for female employees.

Incompatible functions: Problems of protection and comfort identified by female police officers required to wear ballistic vests over bras

ABSTRACT Fit-for-purpose operational equipment for women undertaking law enforcement has generated significant discussion and research internationally over several years. This research addresses the need to ensure optimum safety and fit for women who require ballistic vests as part of their policing roles. It examined whether bras can improve the performance of unisex ballistic vests for women of all bust sizes. A survey of 273 female Victoria Police officers was conducted. The results showed that unisex ballistic vests are not suitable for women with larger breasts when combined with commercial sports bras. Conversely, women with smaller breasts experienced limited issues. Although wire-free bras are recommended for use with ballistic vests, officers with larger breasts reported that they preferred to wear underwire bras. Women with larger breasts experienced more problems with unisex ballistic vests than women with small breasts. Sports bras are not designed to be worn under body armour for prolonged periods.

A Study on the factors that affects on the turnover intention of the Police and Correctional officers

이 연구는 경찰과 교정직 여성공무원들이 경험하고 있는 조직 내의 성희롱·성폭력과 조직 내의 각종 성차별적 제도·문화·관행 등에 대하여 이들의 인식태도를 살펴보고 이러한 부정적 요소가 이직의도에 어떠한 영향을 미치는지를 검증하고자 하였다. 분석결과, 여성 경찰공무원과 교정직 여성공무원 모두 조직의 양성평등 의식이 부족할수록, 그들의 성차별 피해경험이 많을수록, 조직문화 및 관행이 남성 중심적일수록 이직의도를 높게 형성하고 있는 것으로 나타났다. 그리고 이직의도에 영향을 미치는 요인들을 각 조직별로 비교 분석해보면 먼저, 경찰직에 있어서는 남녀평등의식이 부족할수록, 조직문화 및 관행이 남성 중심적일수록 여성 경찰공무원의 이직의도가 높은 것으로 나타났다. 반면에 교정직에서는 연령이 높을수록, 성차별 피해를 많이 경험할수록, 기혼보다 미혼일수록, 양성평등의식이 부족할수록, 이직의도가 높게 형성되는 것을 발견할 수 있었다. 따라서 그들의 이직을 억제하기 위해서는 첫째, 남성적 조직문화와 관행들이 개선될 수 있도록 양성평등 교육을 확대하고 내실화해야 한다. 둘째, 일·가정 양립을 위한 법, 제도적 장치를 더욱 확대하고 조직 관리자나 내부 구성원들의 인식을 개선하여 여성은 물론 남성 공무원들도 적극적으로 제도를 활용하도록 해야 한다. 셋째, 직무 내외를 불문하고 여성 교정 공무원들에게 발생하는 다양한 성차별적 관행들을 개선하여 진정한 의미의 기회와 보상의 평등권이 실현되도록 해야 할 것이다. 넷째, 성희롱 피해경험이 여성 공무원들의 이직의도 형성에 유의미한 영향을 미치지는 않고 있지만 성희롱 피해가 매우 은밀하게 발생할 수 있고 피해자에게 극심한 심리적 문제를 야기할 수 있으므로 성희롱 가해자에 대한 엄벌주의 역시 동시에 확립해야 한다.The purpose of this study is searching the recognition attitudes of the female Police and Correctional officers and verifying the effects of negative factors to turnover intention about sexual harassment, and various gender discriminational system, culture and practices that the female Police and Correctional officers has experienced. As a result, both of the female Police and Correctional officers build higher turnover intention when recognition of gender equality are less, officers experienced more gender discrimination experiences, organizational culture and practices are more masculine. Additionally, compare and analyze the factors that affects to turnover intentions by each organization. First, by police organization, the female Police officers build higher turnover intention when recognition of gender equality are less, organizational culture and practices are more masculine. On the other side, by correctional organization, the female Correctional officers build higher turnover intention when the age of officers is higher, the officers experienced more damages from gender discriminations, the officers are unmarried, recognition of gender equality are less. Following the result, for the restriction of turnover. there are four suggestion. First, expand and substantialize gender equality education to improve masculine organizational culture and practices. Second, expand legal and institutional strategies for work-family reconciliation and improve recognition of organizational administrator and internal to allow male and female officers to use system Third, regardless the inside and outside of officers’ dutie, improve various gender discriminative practices for the female Correctional officers to realize equal rights of opportunities and compensation. Forth, even though experience of sexual harassment does not affect to turnover intention of female Police and Correctional officers, punitivism ought to be simultaneously established due to damage of sexual harassment is available to occur secretly and cause severe psychological damage.

성 분할 모집 폐지에 따른 여성경찰 체력시험의 문제점

성 분할 모집 폐지에 따른 여성경찰 체력시험의 문제점

Seeing and Doing Gender at Work: A Qualitative Analysis of Canadian Male and Female Police Officers

This qualitative study examines the ways in which male and female police officers view and enact gender in their workplace. Data were generated from in-depth interviews with 20 active police officers working in a populous Canadian province. Although most male officers deny gender differences and gender bias, female officers describe experiences of workplace sexism and deploy adaptive strategies daily in their workplaces to resist gender inequality. Both men and women describe a masculine-coded ideal police officer and disparage the “old police culture” and “old boy’s club.”

Patriarchal beliefs and perceptions towards women among Indian police officers: A study of Uttar Pradesh, India

The objective of this study was to explore the association between patriarchal beliefs and perceptions regarding gender equity among Indian police officers. Using convenience and systematic random sampling, a cross-sectional survey was conducted with 190 police officers from Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh, India. The survey collected information about patriarchal beliefs, perception regarding gender equity, as well as social demographic characteristics including age, education, gender, work experience, working shifts/hours, place of residence and family system. Multiple linear regressions were used to predict patriarchal beliefs, utilizing the independent variable of perceptions regarding gender equity. Police officials held a high degree of patriarchal belief and inequitable perceptions regarding the gender roles of women. Multiple linear regression analysis, controlling for key sociodemographic variables, demonstrated a statistically significant association between the police officers’ patriarchal beliefs and their perceptions of gender equity. These findings emphasize the need for greater representation of female police officers and gender-inclusive training for all police officers in providing services to women. Gender-sensitive interventions may help facilitate positive change for police officers that hold strong patriarchal perceptions towards women and who may make it more difficult for women to successfully submit gender-based complaints.

Female attrition from the police profession

PurposeDo female police recruits drop out of police education and/or leave the profession more often than men, and has this changed over time? Can gender differences be explained by the background characteristics and family obligations of the recruits?Design/methodology/approachThis paper employs administrative registry data covering all individuals admitted to the police academy (1995–2010, N = 6570) and all academy recruits employed in the Norwegian police (1992–2014, N = 7301). The paper analyses the data using discrete-time logistic regression and coarsened exact matching.FindingsThe levels of dropout and attrition are generally low. However, female recruits have a somewhat greater tendency both to drop out of education and to leave the force. The gender differences are quite stable, although the percentage of female recruits has risen sharply. Family obligations do not seem to explain female attrition from the police force.Research limitations/implicationsBecause women tend to leave the police more often than men, further research is suggested in investigating female police recruits’ experiences. However, the relatively low level of dropout and limited gender differences also provide a reason to question whether stories of the police as a male-dominated profession not adapted to women are valid across time and in different settings.Originality/valueThis study provides exhaustive and detailed longitudinal data not previously available in studies of police careers. This study also tracks attrition in a period that has involved both increased numerical representation of women and changes in police culture, while accounting for other observable differences between male and female police officers. Contrary to common explanations, there is limited importance of family obligations and altered gender composition.

Work-family conflict and job dissatisfaction among police officers: mediation of threat to family role and moderation of role segmentation enhancement

PurposeThis study investigates the mechanism between work-family conflict (WFC) and job dissatisfaction by considering threat to family role as a mediator and role segment enhancement as a moderator.Design/methodology/approachThe data were collected from 245 male and 245 female police officers using a questionnaire-based survey method through convenience sampling.FindingsResults revealed that threat to family role partially mediates the association between WFC and job dissatisfaction. Role segment enhancement was also noted to weaken the association between WFC and job dissatisfaction. Moreover, the study revealed that male employees are more likely to draw a boundary between their work and family domain, which was not found in their female counterparts.Research limitations/implicationsThe survey for this study was conducted in a male-dominant developing country, so results may be different in developed countries. The study has theoretical and managerial implications.Originality/valueThis study adds value to the existing literature on work-family conflicts in the perspective of source attribution and boundary management. Further, to the best of researchers' knowledge, none of the previous studies have examined role segment enhancement and threat to family role among the police workforce.

Subjective interpretation of "objective" video evidence: Perceptions of male versus female police officers' use-of-force.

The police face great scrutiny after highly publicized instances of lethal force. Dash-camera footage ostensibly provides "objective" evidence of whether the force was excessive. We tested whether participants interpreted the same "objective" video of an officer exerting force differently based on the officer's gender and race. We predicted that when (a) a male (vs. female) officer used force and (b) a Black (vs. White) officer used force, participants would endorse more internal and less external explanations for their use-of-force, which would be associated with less trust in and perceived effectiveness of the officer. We randomly assigned Amazon's Mechanical Turk workers (N = 452; 53% female, 80% White) to (a) see a segment of a police-civilian interaction video that either included or did not include exertion of force, and to believe that the officer was (b) male versus female, and (c) Black versus White. They reported their trust in the officer and perceptions of the officer's effectiveness, and their degree of agreement with external and internal attributions for the officer's behavior. When officers used force, people trusted officers less (d = 1.13) and perceived them to be less effective (d = .78) relative to when they did not. Despite all participants viewing the same interaction, people who thought they saw a male (vs. female) officer perceived his use-of-force to be driven more by internal traits, such as being aggressive and emotionally reactive, and less by the external situation, which was associated with decreased trust and perceived effectiveness. In contrast, people perceived female (vs. male) officers' force to be driven more by external aspects of the dangerous situation, which was associated with increased trust and perceived effectiveness. This pattern did not depend on the officers' race or participants' gender. This constitutes a rare instance of women benefiting from violating gender stereotypes in the workplace because people assumed her counterstereotypical behavior was more justified by the situation and less about her being an aggressive and emotionally reactive person. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).