Job Burnout Thesis

In the 1970’s Canser (1978) found that only 1.6% of females were employed in law enforcement personnel positions, even though Jurik & Halemba (1984) claim women have higher levels of education. A study conducted by Norvell, Hills & Murrin (1993) researched male verse female responses to factors involved with work in the law enforcement field. According to Norvell et al., (1993), male police officers reported higher stress levels and exhibited higher levels of three different classifications of burnout: emotional exhaustion, depersonalization and personal accomplishments. Their study indicated women should be actively recruited with law enforcement positions; given the lower stress and burnout levels (Norvell, et al., 1993). They also believe

Female police officers have been saddled with a stigma ever since they were allowed to join the force with male officers. Female police officers performance and ability to do their job and perform well is often questioned because they are women. Female officers are not given the same respect as male officers because of their gender; however, they bring different skills and assets to the profession that male officers do not. Female officers are less likely to use force or become aggressive because they have better communication skills and empathize. However, female officers will resort to using aggressive behaviors or force when necessary. Superior officers and male patrol officers feel that women are only on the force because it is a matter of social integration and an HR requirement. They feel that this is a man’s profession, and women have no business trying to be a part of it.

There are many stereotypes that women in the law enforcement field have to face. In order to recruit more women into policing, law enforcement agencies should attempt to overcome the idea that policing is a "male-oriented profession". This paper will cover parts of the history of women police officers, some views and stereotypes of the female officer, job related issues, life outside of the workforce and job satisfaction.

This thesis explores the area of occupational stress at a well-known construction company in Sweden, by interviewing employees about their views and perceptions of causes and effects of job stress and what areas that calls for improvement. To get a broader picture of the employee perceptions, an employee survey was sent out to a larger group of employees working in the Gothenburg area. It is clear that construction personnel suffer from a high level of occupational stress. A difference was spotted between those who work on site, compared to those working at the office. Site managers and supervisors working on site were the ones that experienced the highest level of stress. By working in projects, they have both tight deadlines and budgets to

In recent years, recruitment and retention of police officers has been a pain point for many departments across the nation. Odd and inflexible hours, uncompetitive pay, para-militaristic organizational structures, and a negative public perception have all worked to diminish the pool of applicants interested in careers in law enforcement. Add to the mix the sexist “brotherhood” police culture, emphasis on masculinity and aggression, and the nearly non-existent opportunities for advancement for women, and over half of the eligible workforce has been discouraged from even considering a career in law enforcement. In 2013, women comprised just over 57% of the labor force, but accounted for only 13% of sworn police officers (USDOL, 2013; Crooke, 2013). Not only are women sorely underrepresented in the field of law enforcement, but those who are employed experience discrimination at the hands of their supervisors and coworkers, and as a result, the attrition rate for women is often much higher than that of their male counterparts. Departments should pledge dedication to recruiting and retaining more female officers, as research indicates that not only do females perform just as well as males in patrol positions, but they also have a unique set of advantages to offer agencies when employed in law enforcement. In order to improve the recruitment and retention of females into policing roles, departments must determine the biggest deterrents for women who are considering the pursuit

The New Jersey State Police does not experience much turnover. However, within a twenty-five year career, a trooper’s attitude, and how that attitude relates to job satisfaction and output can be measured. While a trooper with 10-15 years experience may be distrustful of command staff, junior troopers (those with 1-5 years) are viewed as zealots. Junior troopers are productive and engaged in their field. A trooper’s job satisfaction can be measured by his/her’s perceived organizational support. Job satisfaction has a direct correlation to employee engagement and perceived organizational support.

Among police, there are stark differences between male and female officers. Cara E. Rabe-Hemp researched these sex differences by conducting a series of interviews with policewomen. These interviews reveal how policewomen cope with the seemingly impossible task to find a balance between feminine values that they were raised to uphold and masculine values that their male-dominated field demands. According to the individual perspective, employees’ performance is more shaped by their unique personal experiences as opposed to standardized formal training (Britt 185). Since neither police officers’ formal training nor their subculture reduce or eliminate the differences between policemen and policewomen, sex differences have a much more significant

As if situations were not bad enough, most law enforcement agencies place additional pressures on female who want to become police officers. Some of the pressures are: physical criteria that are based on masculine ability (this practice has seen some small changes); Job Bias (e.g., facing extra challenges that male officers do not have to deal with); “learn "the tough way" not to take biased and off-color comments personally” (“Women in Law”, 2008, para. 8); do not allow male officers to make patronizing remarks and not reporting it for fear of retaliation from male counterparts. Recruiting & Retaining Women: A Self-Assessment Guide for Law Enforcement (n.d., p. 45) thinks that along with everything else recruiting women can be just as hard, because women tend to be very unwilling to apply for jobs as officers with

Being a female in law enforcement can be challenging at times but however the reward will outweigh the risk. What exactly does happen when females join in “the biggest boys club in America”? Sandra K. Wells and Betty L. Alt are the authors of Police Women Life With A Badge where they discuss the struggles of female police officers seeking to reach top ranking positions; their efforts can be identified as failure, success, politics, and fair play. This book not only presents the struggles of the current problems as a female police officer but past problems as well. Wells and Alt provide a brief history of females in law enforcement through the eyes of female officers. This book outlines where women started in the criminal justice system to where

“Numerous studies have found that there is a negative relationship between job satisfaction and burnout” (Wang, Tianhong, & Quanquan, 2014, p. 328). Human emotion varies from person to person. One officer could not feel satisfied with his job while the other could. The officer who is not satisfied will more than likely be at the burnout point faster.                 After being a law enforcement officer for six years I have observed a lot of different personalities and approaches to doing the job.

Women do not have a long extensive history within law enforcement, therefore, they face many obstacles. Women were once not allowed in the law enforcement field, but over time we have seen a shift and more and more women have proven to be just as good, if not better (Nicholas, 2012). The whole concept of “women in law enforcement” has faced a fair share of common and everyday struggles. Women are often seen as inferior or less important than men, they are often harassed and faced with many different types of abuse. As a result, getting promoted or advancing throughout the criminal justice field remains a constant struggle (Nicholas, 2012). Many women are faced with family obligations such as: pregnancy, motherhood and learning how to balance life as a mom with life as an officer (Nicholas, 2012). Women in law enforcement are constantly dealing with everyday stressors such as: high stress positions and burnout among the departments (Nicholas, 2012).

Aside from the physical aspects, most argue that another big issue with women in law enforcement is they can’t handle the emotional aspects this job brings. Most people assume that women have less of a tolerance when it comes to the

The study that is being proposed here aims to correct the imbalance in what is known of female retention by providing information that is known about male police officers. Most previous studies have investigated male police officers and have reported that stressful events can lead to chronic stress, burnout, alcohol use, and quitting the police force (Anshel, 2000; Hawkins, 2001; Reese, 1982). Job burnout has been recognized as a serious problem among male police officers because of the demands placed on them (Euwema, Kop, & Schaufeli, 1999). Taking the information that has been studied among male officers this study will measure job burnout as a potential cause for the poor retention of female officers. Stress and alcohol use were reported

When it comes to race within law enforcement, male police officers still question whether women can handle the dangerous situations and physical confrontations that officers may be confronted with, while it is shown that most police women have easily met the expectations of their superiors. Indeed, studies have found that, in general, male and female officers perform in similar ways. In addition, research has found that most citizens have positive things to say about the work of police women (Worden,

Several studies have been conducted in trying to find the answer to various causes and explanations for turnover on law enforcement officers. Job satisfaction is one of the major concepts in most studies, where some small police departments were examined with this regard and found that there seems to be a connection between stress and job satisfaction (Julseth, Ruiz, & Hummer, 2011). Moreover, that higher stress levels, the perception of the department morale, and faster rotating shifts, can have an impact on the levels of job satisfaction (Julseth et al., 2011).