Risk news

Police officers struggle to maintain a positive work-life balance, according to researchers.

They said shift work, long hours and being unable to switch out of work role when at home all combine to make officers experience anxiety and depression.

The survey, of more than 1,200 police officers and staff from a major police force in the UK, found male officers were just as likely as their female colleagues to experience work-family conflicts.

It was presented at the annual conference of the British Psychological Society's Division of Occupational Psychology.

Researchers Dr Almuth McDowell and Dr Mark Cropley from the University of Surrey and Professor Gail Kinman from the University of Bedfordshire said there were differences in the types of support offered to mitigate work-life problems.

They found internal management – from managers, co-workers and senior management – helped 'buffer' the officers' experience of work-family conflict on well-being.

On the other hand, support from "caring others" outside of the police force was not found to offer as much protection.

"Our findings clearly indicate that the demands related to policing are quite pervasive on officers' non-working lives," said Dr McDowell.

The conference was held at the Crowne Plaza in Chester.