MMPI‐2 assessed post‐traumatic stress disorder related to job stress, coping, and personality in police agencies

Abstract The PK and PS scales of the MMPI‐2 were developed to index the degree of post‐traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). These scales were applied to a sample of 254 mostly male sworn and civilian law enforcement employees from four police agencies. Participants also completed surveys measuring their perceived levels of job stress, their use of a set of coping strategies, and their performance on measures of five global personality domains. The two PTSD scales appeared to have good internal structures and relatively high reliabilities. Employees at greater risk for PTSD reported higher levels of work‐related stress, seemed to use more maladaptive coping strategies, were more neurotic, and tended to be less extraverted, agreeable, and conscientious. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.