A Meta-Analytic Review of the Correlates of Perceived Stress among Police Officers
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University of Cincinnati / OhioLINK
2012
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| Online Access: | http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1342464114 |
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ndltd-OhioLink-oai-etd.ohiolink.edu-ucin13424641142021-08-03T06:15:48Z A Meta-Analytic Review of the Correlates of Perceived Stress among Police Officers Webster, Jennifer H. Criminology police stress stress and coping meta-analysis <p>There appears to be widespread belief (among lay persons, academics, and police officers) that the occupation of policing is highly stressful (Kappeler et al., 2000). Furthermore, many believe operational variables unique to policing are the primary causes of this stress (e.g., Waters & Ussery, 2007). The near-dogmatic resiliency of this image of policing has created a popular culture where all matters related to the profession are approached with these underlying assumptions. It has also given rise to the tendency among stress researchers to focus on the operational or organizational demands facing officers without giving due consideration to the process of cognitive appraisal - and the many influences on that process - which shape the evaluation of those demands. This atheoretical approach in combination with variability in methodological quality across studies, including gross inconsistencies in the choice and measurement of the independent variables, and even in the measurement of the dependent variable of interest itself (stress), has given rise to a body of research that has been characterized in multiple narrative reviews as contradictory and inconclusive. </p><p>The current study is an effort to take stock of the research on perceived stress among police officers by quantitatively synthesizing the available empirical literature on the subject via the use of meta-analysis. The research plan proposed to first compare individual correlates of perceived stress in order to draw conclusions about their relative strength and stability. Unfortunately, the 103 studies which meet the inclusion criteria for the meta-analysis are so fraught with missing data there are not enough effect size estimates for individual correlates to allow for meaningful comparisons at that level. However, the systematic documentation of the depth and breadth of missing data is an important contribution of the current study, and should help guide future research in this area. </p><p>The current study also proposes a model of stress and coping as an interactive process between an individual and his or her environment. Although the large amount of missing data do not allow for meaningful comparison of individual predictors, collapsing correlates into predictor domains that mirror the proposed model of stress and coping allows for a preliminary analysis of some of the constructs in that model. While the broad confidence intervals generated for each domain do require caution in interpretation, the findings at least suggest that each domain contributes to the perception of stress and that knowledge in this area might best be advanced by recognizing the importance of each in shaping an interactive process of stress and coping rather than attempting to rank individual correlates. In short, the data do not allow definitive conclusions that personal characteristics or job characteristics, for example, are more important than others in shaping stress perception among police officers. Clearly, these findings are limited by the degree of missing data, but it may be that questions about what is most important in shaping police stress have remained unanswered because the variables of interest make equally important contributions to a complex process.</p> 2012-10-16 English text University of Cincinnati / OhioLINK http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1342464114 http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1342464114 unrestricted This thesis or dissertation is protected by copyright: all rights reserved. It may not be copied or redistributed beyond the terms of applicable copyright laws. |
| collection |
NDLTD |
| language |
English |
| sources |
NDLTD |
| topic |
Criminology police stress stress and coping meta-analysis |
| spellingShingle |
Criminology police stress stress and coping meta-analysis Webster, Jennifer H. A Meta-Analytic Review of the Correlates of Perceived Stress among Police Officers |
| author |
Webster, Jennifer H. |
| author_facet |
Webster, Jennifer H. |
| author_sort |
Webster, Jennifer H. |
| title |
A Meta-Analytic Review of the Correlates of Perceived Stress among Police Officers |
| title_short |
A Meta-Analytic Review of the Correlates of Perceived Stress among Police Officers |
| title_full |
A Meta-Analytic Review of the Correlates of Perceived Stress among Police Officers |
| title_fullStr |
A Meta-Analytic Review of the Correlates of Perceived Stress among Police Officers |
| title_full_unstemmed |
A Meta-Analytic Review of the Correlates of Perceived Stress among Police Officers |
| title_sort |
meta-analytic review of the correlates of perceived stress among police officers |
| publisher |
University of Cincinnati / OhioLINK |
| publishDate |
2012 |
| url |
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1342464114 |
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AT websterjenniferh ametaanalyticreviewofthecorrelatesofperceivedstressamongpoliceofficers AT websterjenniferh metaanalyticreviewofthecorrelatesofperceivedstressamongpoliceofficers |
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