Stress in the Police Service

In this study, the sources of stress among supervisory police officers were explored. It was found that one of the major sources of stress across all managerial levels among the police was the perception that the police service was inhibited by unnecessary bureaucratic and outside obstacles, e.g., increased paperwork, interdepartmental politics, lack of adequate planning and resources and the inability of the courts to prosecute offenders. It was also found that junior and middle supervisory police officers were adversely affected by lack of available manpower and long working hours, whereas senior officers were affected more by the conflict in maintaining positive policing as well as good community relations.