The Mediating Role of Police Officers' Emotional Self-Regulation Competency in the Association between Perceived Stress and Suicide Tendency

Abstract Objectives Suicide tendency is prevalent among police officers, influenced by various psychological factors and challenging work conditions that impact their well-being and mental health. Despite its significance, there remains a scarcity of evidence addressing this critical issue. The current study aimed to examine the mediating role of regulatory emotional self-efficacy in the association between perceived stress and suicide probability. Method The data were collected from 855 police officers (85.8% men; mean age = 35.68 ± 8.83) in Turkey. Using a cross-sectional research design, participants were administered the stress subscale of the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale (DASS), the Regulatory Emotional Self-Efficacy Scale, and the Suicide Probability Scale. Results The results showed that perceived stress had a significant direct positive impact on suicidal probability and a negative impact on regulatory emotional self-efficacy. The regulatory emotional self-efficacy had a significant direct negative impact on suicidal probability. Furthermore, regulatory emotional self-efficacy played a partial mediating role in the effect of perceived stress on suicidal probability. Conclusions Effective use of emotional self-regulation skills by police officers can mitigate the impact of perceived stress and decrease suicidal tendencies.