Critical work situations as a predictor of professional burnout among law enforcement officers

Relevance. The problem of the impact of challenging work situations on the development of burnout syndrome is highly relevant for elucidating the peculiarities of professional activities among law enforcement personnel. Difficult work situations arising in the activities of law enforcement officers create a persistent stress load, which negatively affects the performance of official duties by law enforcement personnel and contributes to a decrease in their overall quality of life.

Purpose: to analyze the impact of difficult work situations on the occurrence of professional burnout syndrome among law enforcement officers.

Methodology. The study involved 89 employees of the St. Petersburg police department aged from 20 to 54 years, differing in gender, experience in the law enforcement system and the specifics of professional contacts. The study used psychological, sociological and mathematical-statistical methods. Data collection was carried out in the form of a face-to-face individual survey.

Results and their analysis. Regression analysis showed that difficult work situations influence the occurrence of professional burnout syndrome among law enforcement officers. Employees with 5 to 10 years of work experience are most susceptible to this impact. The most pronounced indicator of professional burnout is depersonalization. The most traumatic type of difficult work situations is a situation of permanent stress.

Conclusion. The problem of the influence of difficult work situations on professional burnout of law enforcement officers requires in-depth psychological analysis, since various dysfunctional consequences of  “burnout” may arise, leading to various violations in the performance of professional activities of law enforcement officers immersed in specific difficult work situations.

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