Last update:

   23-Jul-2008
 

Arch Hellen Med, 2007, 24(Supplement 1):43-50

ORIGINAL PAPER

Physical and psychological functioning of Greek police officers

N. VEMI, F. ANAGNOSTOPOULOS, D. NIAKAS
Hellenic Open University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Patras, Greece

OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to investigate the quality of life of the employees in the Hellenic Police Force and compare it to that of the general population.

METHOD The research took place in all police force services that were based in the Peloponnisos prefecture, while the research instrument used was the SF-36. The factors that were tested to be linked with the police officers' physical and mental health included age, sex, family status, years of experience in the Force and the work duties.

RESULTS The measurement of physical health revealed only few differences that concerned the sex, the duties and the work experience. The comparison of police officers' sample with a general population's sample showed significant differences in favour of the general population regarding the physical and mental health.

CONCLUSIONS Based on our findings, especially regarding the inequalities found between the police officers' sample and the general population, it is concluded that there is a need for interventions to be implemented in order to improve the police officers' quality of life.

Key words: Physical and mental health, Police force, Quality of life, SF-36 questionnaire.


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