Hopelessness in Police Officers and Its Association with Depression and Burnout: A Pilot Study

Cristina Civilotti, Daniela Acquadro Maran, Sergio Garbarino and Nicola Magnavita
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Cristina Civilotti: Department of Psychology, Università di Torino, Via Verdi 10, 10124 Torino, Italy
Daniela Acquadro Maran: Department of Psychology, Università di Torino, Via Verdi 10, 10124 Torino, Italy
Sergio Garbarino: Department of Neuroscience, Rehabilitation, Ophthalmology, Genetics and Maternal/Child Sciences (DI-14 NOGMI), University of Genoa, 16132 Genoa, Italy
Nicola Magnavita: Postgraduate School of Occupational Health, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Rome, Italy

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 9, 1-12

Abstract: Hopelessness is a particularly critical condition and a risk factor for suicide. Many studies have reported that this condition is common in some occupations and is associated with high stress that is not properly managed. This study examined the prevalence of hopeless status (HS) in a sample of police officers (POs) and the association of hopelessness with depression, burnout, and suicidality. In total, 127 out of 231 POs participated in the survey; they were assessed with the Beck Hopelessness Scale, the Beck Depression Scale, and the Maslach Burnout Inventory. A total of 26.5% of POs reported hopelessness, and a significant association was found with depression and burnout; in individual cases, these conditions were associated with suicidal thoughts. In a multivariate logistic regression model adjusted for confounding variables, depression, emotional exhaustion, and reduction of personal accomplishment were significantly associated with HP status. Depression (OR = 3.02, 95% CI: 1–9.12) and emotional exhaustion (OR = 1.88, 95% CI: 1.06–3.32) significantly increased the risk of hopelessness, while personal accomplishment (OR = 0.57, 95% CI: 0.32–1) was a protective factor. Hopelessness appears to be a very important factor to consider when assessing POs’ mental health.

Keywords: suicidal ideation; mental health; depression; helping professions; stress (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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