DOI: 10.3886/icpsr02696
title: Work and Family Services for Law Enforcement Personnel in the United States, 1995
title: Archival Version

description: This study was undertaken to provide current information
 on work and family issues from the police officer's perspective, and
 to explore the existence and prevalence of work and family training
 and intervention programs offered nationally by law enforcement
 agencies. Three different surveys were employed to collect data for
 this study. First, a pilot study was conducted in which a
 questionnaire, designed to elicit information on work and family
 issues in law enforcement, was distributed to 1,800 law enforcement
 officers representing 21 municipal, suburban, and rural police
 agencies in western New York State (Part 1). Demographic information
 in this Work and Family Issues in Law Enforcement (WFILE)
 questionnaire included the age, gender, ethnicity, marital status,
 highest level of education, and number of years in law enforcement of
 each respondent. Respondents also provided information on which
 agency they were from, their job title, and the number of children
 and step-children they had. The remaining items on the WFILE
 questionnaire fell into one of the following categories: (1) work and
 family orientation, (2) work and family issues, (3) job's influence
 on spouse/significant other, (4) support by spouse/significant other,
 (5) influence of parental role on the job, (6) job's influence on
 relationship with children, (7) job's influence on relationships and
 friendships, (8) knowledge of programs to assist with work and family
 issues, (9) willingness to use programs to assist with work and
 family issues, (10) department's ability to assist officers with work
 and family issues, and (11) relationship with officer's
 partner. Second, a Police Officer Questionnaire (POQ) was developed
 based on the results obtained from the pilot study. The POQ was sent
 to over 4,400 officers in police agencies in three geographical
 locations: the Northeast (New York City, New York, and surrounding
 areas), the Midwest (Minneapolis, Minnesota, and surrounding areas),
 and the Southwest (Dallas, Texas, and surrounding areas) (Part
 2). Respondents were asked questions measuring their health,
 exercise, alcohol and tobacco use, overall job stress, and the number
 of health-related stress symptoms experienced within the last
 month. Other questions from the POQ addressed issues of concern to
 the Police Research and Education Project -- a sister organization of
 the National Association of Police Organizations -- and its
 membership. These questions dealt with collective bargaining, the Law
 Enforcement Officer's Bill of Rights, residency requirements, and
 high-speed pursuit policies and procedures. Demographic variables
 included gender, age, ethnicity, marital status, highest level of
 education, and number of years employed in law enforcement. Third, to
 identify the extent and nature of services that law enforcement
 agencies provided for officers and their family members, an Agency
 Questionnaire (AQ) was developed (Part 3). The AQ survey was
 developed based on information collected from previous research
 efforts, the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994
 (Part W-Family Support, subsection 2303 [b]), and from information
 gained from the POQ. Data collected from the AQ consisted of whether
 the agency had a mission statement, provided any type of mental
 health service, and had a formalized psychological services
 unit. Respondents also provided information on the number of sworn
 officers in their agency and the gender of the officers. The
 remaining questions requested information on service providers, types
 of services provided, agencies' obstacles to use of services,
 agencies' enhancement of services, and the organizational impact of
the services.
description: In the past 20 years, many articles, books, and
 manuals have been published on police stress. The literature has
 noted that the stressful nature of police work, along with other
 occupational demands, can have a great impact on the family life of
 police officers. The literature has further noted that the family
 suffers vicariously as a result of the stress that the officer
 directly experiences while on the job, can be a critical support
 system for the officer, and can provide stability, which may be a
 valid predictor of success in police work. Previous empirical data,
 however, have been minimal, dated, and usually not generalizable to
 the current state of the police family. The work environment of law
 enforcement officers has changed greatly due in part to escalating
 crime rates, greater restrictions placed on how officers perform
 their jobs, and the introduction of new technology. Over the last 20
 years, the structure and function of the family have also evolved as
 a result of changing demographics of the work force, as well as
 changing attitudes and values among workers. Obtaining current
 information about stressors experienced by officers and their family
 members, the officers' perceived needs, and potential willingness to
 use programs offered to officers and their families is useful to
 ensure that the appropriate agencies can develop effective,
 family-friendly policies, as well as programs that are focused,
 cost-effective, and address officers' and family members' needs. The
 objectives of this study were to provide current information on work
 and family issues from the police officer's perspective, and to
 explore the existence and prevalence of work and family training and
 intervention programs currently offered nationally by law enforcement
agencies.
description: Three different surveys were used to collect data
 for this study. First, a pilot study was conducted in which a
 questionnaire, designed to study work and family issues in law
 enforcement, was distributed to 1,800 law enforcement officers
 representing 21 municipal, suburban, and rural police agencies in
 western New York State (Part 1). The Work and Family Issues in Law
 Enforcement Questionnaire (WFILE), containing 178 items, was
 developed in two steps: first, a review of pertinent literature was
 undertaken, and then structured telephone interviews with eight law
 enforcement officers and 13 mental health professionals who had
 worked with officers and their families were conducted. The telephone
 interviews were designed to ascertain the primary concerns and issues
 of police officers with regard to work and family. Responses obtained
 from the interviews were subjected to content analysis and used in
 the development of the WFILE. Surveys were delivered by the Erie
 County Department of Central Police Services to each police
 agency. The chiefs of each agency were requested to distribute the
 survey to their officers. Each officer received a cover letter
 eliciting his or her support, a copy of the questionnaire, and a
 self-addressed, stamped return envelope. Central Police Services
 assisted in the collection of the completed surveys. Officers were
 asked to return their completed questionnaires to the Erie County
 Employee Assistance Program. Usable questionnaires were returned by
 597 law enforcement officers. In addition to providing information on
 work and family issues for the law enforcement community in western
 New York, the primary goal of the pilot study was to provide data
 that would be used to develop a questionnaire to be distributed to a
 larger sample of law enforcement agencies. The second survey in this
 data collection, the Police Officer Questionnaire (POQ), was
 developed based on the results of the WFILE. The 148-item
 questionnaire was sent to the homes of over 4,400 officers in police
 agencies in three geographical locations: the Northeast (New York
 City, New York, and surrounding areas), the Midwest (Minneapolis,
 Minnesota, and surrounding areas), and the Southwest (Dallas, Texas,
 and surrounding areas) (Part 2). Within each metropolitan agency,
 department personnel randomly selected officers to participate in the
 project. Two identical sets of mailing labels were produced by each
 department or union to allow for two mailings of the survey
 instrument to the same sample over a three-week period. For both
 mailings, each area was provided with sealed envelopes containing a
 survey instrument, a business reply envelope, and a cover letter
 signed by union representatives and/or the department's police
 commissioner. For the reminder mailing, a different cover letter was
 used. Officers returned completed surveys to researchers at Buffalo
 State College. Responses were received from 1,632 officers
 representing 51 agencies. Third, to identify the extent and nature of
 services that law enforcement agencies provided for officers and
 their family members, the Agency Questionnaire (AQ) was administered
 (Part 3). The AQ survey was developed based on information collected
 from previous research efforts, the Violent Crime Control and Law
 Enforcement Act of 1994 (Part W-Family Support, subsection 2303 [b]),
 and from information gained from the POQ. The AQ, with 82 items, was
 sent to 587 state, municipal, suburban, and rural police agencies
 throughout the United States. A survey, cover letter, and business
 reply envelope were sent to each agency in the sample. The cover
 letter was addressed to the chief of the agency. The envelope,
 however, was addressed with the name of the head of each
 agency. Three weeks after the first mailing, a second mailing was
 carried out. The second mailing was sent only to
 nonrespondents. Completed surveys were returned to researchers at
 Buffalo State College. Data were received from 380 agencies
 representing 48 state agencies, 166 agencies serving populations of
 25,000 to 49,999, 84 agencies serving populations of 50,000 to
 99,999, and 82 agencies serving populations over 100,000. Prior to
 sending the survey to the agencies, each survey was coded with a
 5-digit identification number for the purpose of identifying
 nonrespondents. The first three digits of the code represented a
 specific identification number assigned to each agency. The fourth
 digit of the code identified the strata in which the agency was
 grouped (i.e., 25,000-49,999, or 100,000 or more). The last digit
indicated first or second mailing of the survey.
description: Demographic information in the Work and Family
 Issues in Law Enforcement (WFILE) questionnaire included the age,
 gender, ethnicity, marital status, highest level of education, and
 number of years in law enforcement of each respondent. Respondents
 also provided information on which agency they were from, their job
 title, and the number of children and step-children they had. The
 remaining items on the WFILE questionnaire fell into one of the
 following categories: (1) work and family orientation, (2) work and
 family issues, (3) job's influence on spouse/significant other, (4)
 support by spouse/significant other, (5) influence of parental role
 on the job, (6) job's influence on relationship with children, (7)
 job's influence on relationships and friendships, (8) knowledge of
 programs to assist with work and family issues, (9) willingness to
 use programs to assist with work and family issues, (10) department's
 ability to assist officers with work and family issues, and (11)
 relationship with officer's partner. Variables in Part 2 measured
 respondents' health, exercise, alcohol and tobacco use, overall job
 stress, and the number of health-related stress symptoms experienced
 within the last month. Other questions addressed issues of concern to
 the Police Research and Education Project -- a sister organization of
 the National Association of Police Organizations -- and its
 membership. These questions dealt with collective bargaining, the Law
 Enforcement Officer's Bill of Rights, residency requirements, and
 high-speed pursuit policies and procedures. Demographic variables
 included gender, age, ethnicity, marital status, highest level of
 education, and number of years employed in law enforcement. Data
 collected for Part 3 consisted of whether the agency had a mission
 statement, provided any type of mental health service, and had a
 formalized psychological services unit. Respondents also provided
 information on the number of sworn officers in their agency and the
 gender of the officers. The remaining questions requested information
 on service providers, types of services provided, agencies' obstacles
 to use of services, agencies' enhancement of services, and the
organizational impact of the services.
description: Response Rates: The response rate for the Part 1 was 33.2
 percent. The response rate for the Part 2 was 36.43 percent. The
response rate for Part 3 was 65 percent.
description: Presence of Common Scales: Several Likert-type scales were used in all three
surveys.
description: Parts 1 and 2: Exact sampling unknown. Part 3: Stratified
random sampling.
description: Datasets: 
DS0: Study-Level Files
DS1: Work and Family Issues in Law Enforcement Questionnaire Data
DS2: Police Officer Questionnaire Data
DS3: Agency Questionnaire Data
description: Parts 1 and 2: Police officers. Part 3: Law enforcement
agencies.
description: The user guide, codebook, and data collection
 instruments are provided as a Portable Document Format (PDF)
 file. The PDF file format was developed by Adobe Systems Incorporated
 and can be accessed using PDF reader software, such as the Adobe
 Acrobat Reader. Information on how to obtain a copy of the Acrobat
Reader is provided on the ICPSR Web site.