Understanding the Problem of Police Stress:

How we Cope with Stress:
by Sgt. Vuzzo, Ph.D.

There are individual differences when a person copes with stress and how each person handles a stressful situation, may be dependent upon their ability to minimize perceived stress. Goleman’s (2001) research has found that the emotionally competent individual will encounter significantly less perceived stress than the emotionally incompetent. As the decision makers, law enforcement officers must train and be prepared to deal with the demands of both internal and external factors that incorporate multiple stressors and project decreases in work performance.

When a law enforcement officer loses the ability to cope with stress in normal ways, the quality of work, officer morale, production, and officer suicide can occur.  We constantly hear the law enforcement is one of the most stressful fields.  Engaging in a host of difficult decisions and faced with the stressors of our personal lives it is not unusual to understand why many officer fail to live 10 years
past their retirement.  Thus, the failure to cope
Effectively with stress results in increased rates of heart disease, stomach disorders, alcohol and drug abuse, divorce, and suicide as compared to the norms for the general population.

This leads us to the question of are there any correlation's between emotional intelligence and stress on police officers?  If so, what are they and what can we do about it?