Do police experience trauma during routine work? An analysis of work-related potentially traumatic events and expressed trauma in a sample of Ghanaian police officers

Dados Bibliográficos

ID21177385
AutoresChristina Barnett (0000-0002-5283-8097, Virginia Commonwealth University), Adote Anum (0000-0001-8680-9203, University of Ghana, autor correspondente), Bright Acquah (Approches contemporaines de la création et de la réflexion artistiques), Vivian Dzokoto (Virginia Commonwealth University), Vivian A Dzokoto (0000-0002-7668-9962, Virginia Commonwealth University)
Ano2022
Volume23
Fascículo1
Páginas80-94
Data de publicação2022-01-02
Peer ReviewedSim
Open AccessNão
TipoARTICLE
PeriódicoPolice Practice and Research (JOURNAL)
Identificadores do periódicoISSN: 1561-4263 • E-ISSN: 1477-271X
EditoraInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/15614263.2021.1895777
OpenAlexW3137217288
IdiomaEN
Citações recebidas3
Referências citadas39

Existing research associates police work with stress and mental health challenges due to routine exposure to potentially traumatic incidents. Low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) are under-represented in this literature. In this study, we explored the relationship between work-related potentially traumatic events and expressed trauma symptoms in a sample of 121 Ghanaian police officers. Ninety-seven (97) male and 24 female police officers participated in a semi-structured interview about on-the-job potentially traumatic events and completed a self-report measure of trauma symptoms. Overall, 71.9% of officers were exposed to at least one work-related PTE and 61.2% of officers endorsed at least one trauma. We found that dealing with traffic accidents, assaults and observing autopsy are the top critical incidents. We also found that observing autopsy and officer rank were predictive of expressed trauma. We discuss the findings within the context of a need to examine effects of potentially traumatic events on work and implications for mental health

Mental health · Occupational safety and health · Officer · Political science · Psychiatry · Traumatic stress · Child Abuse and Trauma · Law · Medicine · Policing Practices and Perceptions · Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Research · Psychology