Previous research has suggested that police work is stressful both because of the nature of operational duties and because of the organisational climate in which police officers fulfil these duties. Few studies have compared, however, the views of police officers with those of other emergency personnel.
This paper compares large samples of policemen and firemen in relation to many aspects of their work, job satisfaction and several health indices.
The results confirm that police work and firefighting generate sources of stress for those involved in such work, but that policemen more commonly report health problems and identify such factors as shift work and long hours as being damaging to their personal life. Firemen, on the other hand, reported more job satisfaction than did the policemen.
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