The job of a police officer is extremely stressful and members of the law enforcement community exhibit disproportionately higher incidents of depression, PTSD, suicide ideation, and other mental health issues. Unfortunately, these mental health concerns are becoming increasingly grave as negative interactions with the public are more highly publicized than ever before. The present study evaluated the relationship between officers’ regard for their role as a member of law enforcement, years of experience, and awareness of the media, with stress level and PTSD symptoms. Most notable among the findings were that officers with a higher regard for their role as law enforcement, and those with more media awareness, reported higher stress levels and other maladaptive behaviors that negatively impacted their mental health. The current study contributes to the extant literature by exploring the intersectionality between officers’ stress levels, years of experience, PTSD symptomology, perceived identity, and media awareness. The widespread use of social media to publicize the actions of a small minority of law enforcement officers is among the many elements discovered and discussed in the current research.

警察的工作压力极大，执法人员中抑郁症、创伤后应激障碍、自杀意念和其他心理健康问题的发生率要高得多。不幸的是，随着与公众的负面互动比以往任何时候都更加广为人知，这些心理健康问题变得越来越严重。本研究评估了警官对其作为执法人员角色的看法、多年的经验和媒体意识与压力水平和创伤后应激障碍症状之间的关系。调查结果中最值得注意的是，那些更重视自己执法角色的官员以及那些具有更多媒体意识的官员报告说，压力水平更高，并且其他适应不良行为对他们的心理健康产生了负面影响。当前的研究通过探索警官的压力水平、经验年限、创伤后应激障碍症状、感知身份和媒体意识之间的交叉性，为现有文献做出了贡献。当前研究中发现和讨论的众多因素之一就是广泛使用社交媒体来宣传少数执法人员的行为。