be for job burnout to occur. In this regard, it can be seen that a problem currently exists for many police officers, since they belong to an occupational group which maintains one of the highest levels of job-related stress in the country today.
The extent to which stress has become a serious problem for police officers can be seen in recent studies, which have focused on the topic. For example, one study at an urban police depart-ment showed that "76 percent of the policemen were anxious or impatient on their jobs" (Veninga and Spradley, 1981, pp. 6-7). In addition it was found that one in three policemen at the depart-ment had a drinking problem, and many of the officers also had domestic problems because they were unable to relieve themselves of their job-related stress before returning home (Veninga and Spradley, pp. 128-129). Furthermore, it was found that the majority of the policemen studied tended to ignore or deny the negative impact of stress on their lives.
One of the major reasons that police work is so stressful can be seen in the fact th
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