Mapping Resilience Pathways and Preferences for Help-Seeking Among Police Services in the Context of Post-Traumatic Stress Injuries: A Community Engaged Research Project in Ontario

Background and Purpose:

Police have incredible power over as well as responsibility for our communities. Through their work, they are exposed to some complex traumatic situations and are expected to continue working without difficulty. However, despite the availability of mental health services, the prevalence of Post-Traumatic Stress Injuries (PTSI) among Public Safety Personnel in Canada, including members of Police Services, continues to be significantly higher (40%) than for the general population (12%). This study’s purpose was to identify sources of strength and resilience for those police service members in Ontario who remain functioning well despite similar exposure to occupational stress, and how their employers can be responsive to their help seeking preferences.

Methods: This cross sectional study uses an online survey design and purposeful sampling strategies to recruit current and former members of police services in Ontario. Resilience was measured by the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC). MPLUS was used to test a structural equation modeling (SEM) analysis examining the relationship between resilience, individual and social context factors, attitudes towards mental health, and help seeking preferences.

Results: A path analysis tested if individual factors directly and indirectly (via attitudes and social contextual factors) predicted resilience (M = 73.11, SD = 11.91) in the final sample of 236 members of Ontario police services. Model fitness measures suggested excellent fit to the data: χ² model fit (1) = 0.80, p = .372; RMSEA=.000 [0.00, 017]; CFI =1.00, and SRMR=.001. Self-rated mental health, life satisfaction, sense of community belonging, and attitudes towards mental health treatment directly predicted resilience (R² = .58, p < .001). Individual predictors, self-rated mental health and life stress, significantly indirectly predicted resilience via life satisfaction (β = 0.19, SE = 0.04; β = 0.06, SE = 003, respectively), and self-rated mental health and attitudes toward mental health treatment significantly indirectly predicted resilience via community belonging (β = 0.06, SE = 0.02; β = 0.03, SE = 0.01, respectively). Participants also strongly preferred seeking help via the internet or via informal relationships with colleagues, compared to formal programs or services.

Conclusions and Implications: This study offers initial evidence of the pathways that influence resilience among members of police services. In particular, better understanding of contributors to life satisfaction and sense of community belonging suggests one avenue to supporting resilience in this population. As calls to reimagine policing grow, structural changes in policing can be informed with this study as it reveals the importance of the intersection of individual, community, and occupational factors. It supports prioritizing relationship building - among peers and with the community - as a way to improve individual and community outcomes. It disrupts the dichotomy of police services and community members as service users and instead situates police personnel as members of, contributors to, and influenced by the community they serve.