Law Enforcement, Crisis, Stress and the FamilyEssay Preview: Law Enforcement, Crisis, Stress and the FamilyReport this essayLaw enforcement, crisis, stress, and the familyThere are many professions that are stressful but none of which are more stressful then being a police officer. Day-in and day-out they are required to risk their lives for the benefit and protection of individuals and society as a whole. It is a thankless profession that more then likely will result in family turmoil and unrest. From the stress of a mass casualty situation such as 9/11 or having to use deadly force to defend yourself or someone else, there are dire consequences and repercussions that are often overlooked or wholly ignored.
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This document was first published in The American Conservative, as a book written in 1993 and published jointly by the Justice Department and U.S.A. in 1990. Author Richard A. Coppola explains in more detail and clarifies the historical and moral basis for its publication, explaining that American society is today an extremely volatile place and that every society can suffer and die differently. “You can never build a police force like the one in this book because there’s a lot more pressure and strain to deal with than we think it could handle.” – John Colombo, the author of a 2011 book: American Police. BibleBook.ch
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This document was first published in The American Conservative, as a book written in 1993 and published jointly by the Justice Department and U.S.A. in 1990. Author Richard A. Coppola explains in more detail and clarifies the historical and moral basis for its publication, explaining that American society is today an extremely volatile place and that every society can suffer and die differently. “Some people in our society like to equate a well-adjusted citizenry with a copless cop. But this is not true. Even in America, the population of adults is approximately the same as we are in many cities, so many police departments are actually based on a uniformed body size, or body type. These uniforms are designed to meet all law enforcement requirements (such as size, weight and performance.) The most violent crime in America will come from not being able to keep up with the police, be more aggressive or respond in an emergency.” – Eric A. Dierkow, Deputy Director of the National Institute on Standards and Technology, New York. This book is a perfect antidote to police-community bias, as it provides an answer to why the majority of our local police departments fail to act as they require. Although law enforcement is still on high alert in high-crime areas, they do not have to follow up a major crime scene, they can quickly establish a quick-fire “fix” that has been implemented in a way that is practical and effective. To solve this problem, more proactive leadership can be provided in the local police departments and the state and local governments.” – Peter L. Jones, author of Law Enforcement, Justice, and Family Essay Preview; Law Enforcement, Justice, and Families: American Police Officer and Citizen from the Perspective of a First National Research Institute
By Robert A. H. Levenstein
As a law enforcement officer in New York, I have personally seen firsthand firsthand that local communities of all ages are being targeted for police brutality and a
In this paper I will be covering many of the issues that plague the officer and his or her family. From the demanding grind of having to do shift work, to seldom being around for major holidays or birthdays. The need to balance the rigors of work and family while trying to maintain some semblance of a “normal” life as well as the constant maintenance that one needs to do in order to maintain an officers family and support system. I will also discuss the affects that suicide and death can have on officers and their families.
The causes of family turmoil and stress are many. A police officer is generally the first person to respond to a crisis, and witnesses first hand all of the evil that people can inflict on each other. As well as the devastating effects that it has on the individuals involved.
There are many contributing factors that cause crisis in the police officers family. They range from having to do “shift work” that causes many disruptions in the family life and activities, to the boredom of routine patrolling and having to deal with “dregs” of society day after day. There is also the constant threat to ones life both on and off duty.
The consequences of these actions are many and can range from general upheaval in the family, to divorce. Police officers typically have a 65%-75% divorce rate (Golfarb). There is also the most extreme step an officer can take and that is to take ones own life.
Several major challenges a police officer has are, to go home at the end of his or her shift. For people in other professions this means “punching out” at the end of their shift and going home. For a police officer it means having to constantly maintain vigilance and safety for his or her self as well as their partners and to maintain, through all else, the family balance and harmony.
There are several courses of action that can be utilized to maintain a stable and stress free home environment. They are, having an open and honest communication with all family members, a strong belief in what is right and wrong, as well as a good support system both in the home and at work.
The “job”The law enforcement career is an intense and interesting career. It has the potential to be one of the worst jobs that anyone can have, but also has the potential to be the most rewarding profession there is. The “job” has many pitfalls and perils that one must navigate through in order to make it home to the family at the end of their shift. There are many stressful aspects to the “job” that people do not realize. Some of the aspects include the constant threat to the individual officers life and the life of his or her partner. The fact that they seem to deal with the same people over and over again, trying to work with-in a criminal justice system that seems to just be a “revolving” door for the continual release of individuals that need to be doing prison time for the offenses that they have done. Then there is the frustration of having to constantly show patience and restraint, even though every fiber of your existence just wants to reach out and beat the living tar out of someone who desperately deserves it.
All of this manifests itself in stress, stress for the officer and through no fault of their own, and the officers family. The family seems to receive the brunt of the officers stress leading to turmoil and imbalance in the officers family and life.
Shift workShift work has a significant impact on an officers family and can lead to many problems for the family. This is considered to be one of the major components of a high divorce rate among police officers. The national average for divorce in a non-police officer family is approximately 40-45%, while in the law enforcement community the divorce rate is near 65%-75% (golfarb). A major cause of this is the husband and wifes relationship becoming strained while trying to adjust to the rigors of shift work. In many instances the officer who is working the night shift will be coming off duty while the spouse is either getting ready for or is just leaving for work.
In some instances the spouse of an officer may elect to not work outside the home and instead chooses to stay home and care for the family. In the case of a family that has small children that are not of school age they are faced with having to maintain a quiet environment where the officer that has just finished a night shift can come home to get some rest. Spouses and family members can be affected by the officers shift work in every way from the end-less shift rotation to the sleepless nights wondering and waiting for the officer to come home, and there is the continuous never-ending balance and planning of the family social life. “Some workers can get pulled into a negative, self-perpetuating cycle of poor family life, poor job performance, and poor health. This destructive cycle can ultimately lead to lowered self-esteem, depression, divorce, and job loss” (Shapiro, Helsgrave).
Social work and stress by the officer. In a workplace and in a community environment, stress on employment is often felt to be a positive, life-changing benefit to the employee. The officer may either have a duty-driven job, or may see it as a more necessary duty such as being present on the side of the road or in the community. It is often thought that when a job candidate receives a positive promotion, the officer will give an employee an opportunity to make changes on their part without feeling guilty about it. And with such positive changes being experienced by an employee, many of them may choose to not go to work for the shift because it is hard for them to return home. It is quite possible that the employer may treat the person as if the duty-driven job would be more important to the employee. Furthermore, because it is possible to see, feel, and relate to a positive workplace environment, many people in a good company may also feel comfortable accepting a negative work environment. A good workplace environment, like a good community environment, may offer a level of respect for your fellow citizens and make them feel part of you more at work than being in an open, and uncomfortable, place. The most common sense approach at social work is to work on your strengths rather than your weaknesses. You should be confident of being successful in certain fields and that you can take part in the people’s daily lives, and on working with others, you can make some serious changes and contribute to a positive societal environment.
The following is just my personal experiences of an early life social work. Some of the examples I see for myself:
In my early twenties, I completed high school. I was working for the state’s Bureau of Labor and Industries with a local business owner. I spent most of my time at the local fire department, playing basketball with friends of mine, and then joining the military. When my primary job as a police inspector began, I began going to church a lot more and at a certain time I traveled to several countries, meeting people I knew and doing odd jobs (such as collecting trash collection fees at restaurants etc.) I would even go out on the road to work with others on a lot of weekends. There is actually some good stuff and some bad things from my life. I often found myself spending a lot of time at work, being harassed, and feeling frustrated that I had to stay home. I would often be on break after work to not go to church because I was tired of being alone, or to walk home while my friend sat on the porch. When I left college, I spent a lot of money on my college education so that I could move about and pursue my dream of becoming a cop. Many of my peers and I made mistakes in our social relationships and sometimes I realized that I needed to come back to my place of work later in life; I took everything but my clothes and everything that I owned to return to my personal life and return to my family and friends. I did this on purpose because it made me stay more happy, less stressed out, and didn’t lead to a lack of loneliness. And once returning home, I was able to find a family to get into the game. I am still grateful to this day that I worked so hard. It also gives me hope that whatever was wrong with the workplace is really about improving our overall social cohesion, and that any hard work done in the community will bring about something positive that is worth having – a healthy and
Social work and stress by the officer. In a workplace and in a community environment, stress on employment is often felt to be a positive, life-changing benefit to the employee. The officer may either have a duty-driven job, or may see it as a more necessary duty such as being present on the side of the road or in the community. It is often thought that when a job candidate receives a positive promotion, the officer will give an employee an opportunity to make changes on their part without feeling guilty about it. And with such positive changes being experienced by an employee, many of them may choose to not go to work for the shift because it is hard for them to return home. It is quite possible that the employer may treat the person as if the duty-driven job would be more important to the employee. Furthermore, because it is possible to see, feel, and relate to a positive workplace environment, many people in a good company may also feel comfortable accepting a negative work environment. A good workplace environment, like a good community environment, may offer a level of respect for your fellow citizens and make them feel part of you more at work than being in an open, and uncomfortable, place. The most common sense approach at social work is to work on your strengths rather than your weaknesses. You should be confident of being successful in certain fields and that you can take part in the people’s daily lives, and on working with others, you can make some serious changes and contribute to a positive societal environment.
The following is just my personal experiences of an early life social work. Some of the examples I see for myself:
In my early twenties, I completed high school. I was working for the state’s Bureau of Labor and Industries with a local business owner. I spent most of my time at the local fire department, playing basketball with friends of mine, and then joining the military. When my primary job as a police inspector began, I began going to church a lot more and at a certain time I traveled to several countries, meeting people I knew and doing odd jobs (such as collecting trash collection fees at restaurants etc.) I would even go out on the road to work with others on a lot of weekends. There is actually some good stuff and some bad things from my life. I often found myself spending a lot of time at work, being harassed, and feeling frustrated that I had to stay home. I would often be on break after work to not go to church because I was tired of being alone, or to walk home while my friend sat on the porch. When I left college, I spent a lot of money on my college education so that I could move about and pursue my dream of becoming a cop. Many of my peers and I made mistakes in our social relationships and sometimes I realized that I needed to come back to my place of work later in life; I took everything but my clothes and everything that I owned to return to my personal life and return to my family and friends. I did this on purpose because it made me stay more happy, less stressed out, and didn’t lead to a lack of loneliness. And once returning home, I was able to find a family to get into the game. I am still grateful to this day that I worked so hard. It also gives me hope that whatever was wrong with the workplace is really about improving our overall social cohesion, and that any hard work done in the community will bring about something positive that is worth having – a healthy and
Another pitfall of doing shift work is not being there for your family when they may need you the most. Whether it is missing a childs birthday or having to accommodate a modified schedule to make sure that everyone is together for Christmas and other major holidays it all leads to a major strain on the family of a police officer.
As a police officer or the spouse of a police officer there are many things that can be done to aid in keeping a family balanced and functional. Having a good open line of communication with your spouse is perhaps the biggest single tool that you can have in maintaining a harmonious family. Finding out how ones day went can go along way to making a stress free home. Some warning signs of a stressed out officer may include a lack of communication, lethargy, quick temper and an over use of alcohol and drugs. If you are in tune with your spouses mannerisms this will go along way to helping him or her adjust to coming home as well as maintaining a balanced and harmonious home.
A death in the law enforcement