Workplace Stress and Mental Health Issues among Police Personnel: Analyzing the Effects of Personal Protective Factors

Abstract

The major goal of the research is to examine the relationship between workplace stress and the commonality of mental disorders in the Pakistani police officers. Furthermore, effects of protective factors are also investigated in the context of mediators and moderators. Employing the survey method, 820 police officers aged 20-60 years and selected through purposive sampling technique provided data on the questionnaires of workplace stress, mental health, emotional intelligence, resilience and interpersonal tolerance. The data were analyzed through Hayes Process Macro Model 21 on Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS), version 21. Findings revealed that a majority of the participants in the study reported significant levels of workplace stress, hence, low level of mental health. The Hayes process macro allows for the implementation of multiple moderation and mediation analyses. In the model 21, it was found that emotional intelligence does not act as a mediator between workplace stress and mental health. However, interpersonal tolerance was found to moderate the relationship between emotional intelligence and mental health disorders. This suggests that interpersonal tolerance influences the link between emotional intelligence and mental health problems. Additionally, the causal relationship between workplace stress and emotional intelligence is not moderated by resilience. On the basis of these findings, the police department should implement the strategies to address the work-related stress and psychological health to enhance the overall well-being of police personnel.