Chapter 11 Defining Stress The nonspecific response of the body to any demand made upon it When a person perceives that he is unable to cope with the demands made upon him and when the consequences of this inability to cope are threatening if the individual perceives that social demands cannot be adequately handled mission in one s work the loss of enthusiasm excitement and a sense of o Occurs when there is a constant disjunction between job Burnout demands and worker resources Types of Stress 1 Eustress 2 Distress good stress bad stress the strain that develops as a person becomes more and more engulfed in his occupation Stress Reaction Cycle General Adaptation Syndrome GAS o 1 Alarm Reaction Stage the body responds to threat by accelerating the production of hormones adrenaline and chemicals The heart beats faster breath is quick and shallow o 2 Resistance Stage body steps up hormone production to meet level of threat if situations doesn t end final spurt of energy o 3 Exhaustion Stage when the body finally runs out of fuel and recuperation is needed to rejuvenate nutrition sleep relaxation Sources of Police Stress Four Sources o Intra Individual o Inter Individual o Organizational o Environmental Intra Individual Sources Personality Types o Type A versus Type B o Type A OCD perfectionist energy in everything you do high o Type B less driven laid back nothing bothers you easy come anxiety easy go Career goals and aspirations Limited upward mobility severe competition Inter Individual Sources Communicable Diseases o i e AIDS tuberculosis hepatitis etc o homeless people start taking meds for disease and stop once they feel better don t kill all of the bacteria pass it on Affirmative Action Mandates o Quid pro quo harassment o Hostile Work Environment Harassment Figure 11 1 something for something The harassment was based on sex the claimant was subjected to unwelcome sexual advances a tangible economic benefit Figure 11 2 unwelcome conduct that is so severe it changes the conditions of the claimant s employment and creates an intimidating or offensive work environment Does not require an impact on an economic benefit can involve co workers or third parties not just supervisors not limited to sexual advances can include behavior typically involves a series of incidents rather than one o Excerpts from the U S Attorney General Memorandum on Sexual Harassment Figure 11 3 didn t really go over Unwelcome sexual advances based on gender by managers supervisors or coworkers violate the law when An individual is told or it is implied that he must submit to the unwelcome conduct as a condition of the job An employment decision affecting the individual is made because the individual submitted to or rejected the unwelcome conduct or The unwelcome conduct unreasonably interferes with an individual s work performance or created an intimidating hostile or abusive working environment Organizational Sources Shift work the circadian rhythm programmed 24 hour clock and o Sleeping during the day switching shifts around o Brake pads are shot in patrol car accident patrol cars are fatigue Faulty equipment offices Citizen complaints Environmental Sources The Community o Citizens don t always like officers I pay your salary o The policeman like any other professional wants to be respected for his work Under current conditions however the policeman receives negative feedback from a large segment of the population Instead of being viewed as a hero he is seen as a corrupt unfeeling enforcer Figure 11 4 Response from the FL Office of the Attorney General Regarding a Formal Citizen Complaint about Parking a Marked Police Car in the Neighborhood have to put commercial vehicles inside your garage because it is advertisement AG says police cars are not commercial and actually protect the neighborhood by providing a deterrent Figure 11 5 An Issue of Free Press versus Police Officer Personal Privacy newspaper sews police agency because they wanted the pictures of undercover officers Figure 11 6 An Example of a State Statute Exempting Officers Personal Information from Public Disclosure officers are not in telephone books for their protection but they have to go through a long process to discard this info The Criminal Justice System o Court appearances and work schedule o An officer required to appear for a case which is scheduled on the court docket for 9 AM may actually wait outside the courtroom for four or more hours before he is called This long wait occurs because the judge has a heavy load of cases so to optimize his time he schedules several cases for one period such as a morning session and then goes through the docket one case after another until he is finished If the cases take longer than expected the judge then carries over into the afternoon session Meanwhile our poor defender of peace is left standing idle till his particular case is called o The Constant Threat of Danger Every one of those officers killed had one basic thing in common They all planned on going home at the end of their shift Figure 11 7 The FBI s 10 most wanted list Symbolic Assailant young minority males in some of the more run down areas of town Officers who have to deal with persons fitting this stereotype might appear to be assuming a somewhat combative or even hostile stance Consequences of Police Stress Morbidity disease or sickness and Mortality causes of death o Death certificate examinations indicate that LEOs have a shorter life span than civilians die 10 years before others o Higher death rates from cancer and heart diseases most of them smoke cigs eat junk food donuts fast food for late night shifts o The Florida Heart Lung Law Figure 11 8 illnesses are presumed to be accidental and suffered in the line of duty but they should have successfully passed a physical exam when hired o Eating and dietary patterns Figure 11 9 they have a lunch break but during the case of emergency they must respond must have access to radio Alcohol Abuse o Self Medication can t go to bars can t carry a gun while drinking so they go home and drink after a shift to wind down o When we arrived metal and glass were strewn all over the roadway radiators leaking and blood oozing everywhere The passenger in one car was a two year old little girl with almost purple black lips no heartbeat no respiration I frantically administered the CPR technique I had learned a few weeks earlier God how I did try but nothing helped She was dead I was relieved from
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