Exploratory analysis highlights cultural and identity factors impacting mental health in police officers, suggesting structural changes are necessary for better wellness outcomes.
The mental health and wellness (MHW) of police officers is a global concern. Although many individual-level programs have been implemented in recent years to help officers cope with traumatic events, these initiatives overlook the structural-level conditions that frame how MHW is perceived in police organizations. Drawing on police culture and social identity theory, this paper argues that progress requires attention to three areas: restructuring expectations surrounding MHW in policing, redefining perceptions of officers with MHW concerns, and realigning leadership practices to prioritize organizational MHW.
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Baker et al. (2026) studied this question.
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