The criminal justice system offers many diverse career opportunities. Some of the careers in criminal justice include serving as:
- A police officer
- A corrections officer
- A 911 dispatcher
- A bailiff in the courts
- An investigator
- A victim service coordinator
- A victim specialist
However, these professionals can experience much more stress in criminal justice than others, due to the nature of their work. As a result, an emphasis on stress management in criminal justice occupations is essential.
On an average day, for example, a patrol officer may respond to several traumatic and stressful incidents. These incidents may include:
- Graphic crime scenes
- Crimes against children
- Shootings
- Traffic fatalities
Corrections officers experience the same exposure to stressful incidents. On an average day, corrections officers may be threatened, attacked, or respond to violence or unrest within a correctional facility.
Dispatchers who answer 911 calls often must walk people through medical emergencies and talk victims through how to perform CPR or other aid while waiting for first responders to come to the scene. Dispatchers often receive calls from traumatic crime scenes and can speak to people who are in a life-or-death situation.
Each of these roles comes with unique stress and trauma. If not managed properly, stress can result in burnout, health problems, addiction and even suicide in some cases.
Common Causes of Stress in Criminal Justice
In my criminal justice experience over two decades, I have observed firsthand many of the common stressors in criminal justice. Some of the most common stressors include:
- High-liability decisions – Stress can occur through situations that require the use of deadly force, emergency driving and dealing with violent offenders.
- Consistent exposure to human loss and suffering – Criminal justice professionals are commonly exposed to death, violent crime scenes, tragic vehicle crashes, offenders with mental illness and violent encounters.
- Hypervigilance and cortisol – The frequent unpredictability of exposure to threats and responding to emergencies creates a hypervigilance that is difficult for police officers to turn off while off duty. When the human body goes into the fight or flight response, the brain releases a stress hormone called cortisol. The cortisol may initially help the officer, but repeated releases of high amounts of cortisol can have an adverse impact on the officer’s mental and physical health.
- Organizational stress – I have met many officers who say that agency politics or poor leadership is one of the largest stressors in criminal justice. This stress is associated with selective policy enforcement, agency scrutiny following an incident and staffing shortages.
- Mistrust within the community – Violence toward law enforcement, anti-police rhetoric and public mistrust can lead to officer stress.
- Shift work – For many criminal justice professionals, workdays as long as 12 hours are common. If a shift is combined with an off-duty detail, the officer may end up working an 18-hour day. Shiftwork results in fatigue, which can impact officer safety, emergency responses, and stress.
How Can Criminal Justice Professionals Manage Their Stress?
Effective stress management is essential for criminal justice professionals. Communication regarding stress, feelings of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or dealing with the emotions of experiencing traumatic events is vital.
This communication enables supervisors, friends, and loved ones to support a police officer or criminal justice professional. Bottling up stress can lead to mental health issues.
Many law enforcement agencies have peer support programs. When someone experiences a traumatic event, peer support programs typically assign a fellow officer to that traumatized person.
The impacted officer may be more likely to talk to a peer who has experienced similar traumatic events. The peer can also monitor the affected officer for indicators of stress and burnout.
Self-Monitoring Is Also Important for Reducing Stress in Criminal Justice
Self-monitoring for changes in behavior is also important, because experiencing a highly traumatic event such as a shooting or a bombing affects people differently. In trainings that I have conducted for criminal justice professionals across the U.S., I encourage officers and other criminal justice employees to recognize changes in their thought processes, emotions, and temper.
For instance, a high level of stress can lead to depression and cause criminal justice professionals to stop activities they previously enjoyed. They may distance themselves from family members or may become violent due to unresolved occupational stress.
If criminal justice professionals notice that they have changes in behavior due to stress, the underlying cause should be promptly addressed. The stress may be resolved by requesting a new assignment, taking time off or speaking to a counselor.
There are various indicators of high stress, including
- Nightmares, insomnia and PTSD
- Frequent headaches
- Hypertension
- An impaired immune system
- Increased alcohol intake or other substance abuse
- Weight gain
- Irritability
- Anxiety
- Panic attacks
- Depression
- Cynicism and developing an us-versus-them mentality
- Memory problems
- Feelings of distraction
- Emotional instability
Criminal Justice Professionals Need to Maintain a Work-Life Balance
For anyone who works in criminal justice, maintaining a work-life balance is important. I have met many police officers, corrections officers, and other criminal justice professionals that maintain the same level of alertness and persona in their off hours.
Being unable to turn off the cop mode can lead to stress problems and burnout. I recommend spending time with friends who are not in law enforcement or other areas of the criminal justice field. Through these friends, off-duty officers can gain insight and problem-solving techniques used outside of criminal justice.
Ways to Handle Stress in Criminal Justice
Having an identity outside of the field is useful. Some of the most successful criminal justice professionals that I have met deal with stress and burnout by living almost two lives.
When they are off duty, you wouldn’t know that these people are in law enforcement or criminal justice. They don’t dwell on the job in their time off. Instead, they participate in sports, hobbies and other activities that naturally reduce stress.
Exercise and rest are some of the best ways to manage stress. Exercise releases natural hormones that can relieve stress. Also, rest mitigates fatigue, which can be a driving factor in problems associated with stress.
Many criminal justice professionals experience stress-related health problems during and after their career. However, properly managing stress can mitigate these health problems and can promote longevity.
Police agencies should monitor their officers for indicators that they are struggling with stress. During employee reviews, supervisors should counsel subordinates on effective stress management and ask questions that encourage subordinates to talk about any stress-related problems.
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