Evaluation of operational stress in riot and crowd control police units: a global challenge for prevention and management of police task-related stress

Description

The aim of the current study was to evaluate stress levels during routine activities and during a major political event by members of the VI Reparto Mobile, an Italian specialized police unit exclusively deployed for riot and crowd control, which had undergone serious stress and liability consequences after the 2001 G8-Summit in Genoa. These results suggest that members of the specialized unit had good capacity to withstand stress. Chronic routine work might be significantly more stressful for these kinds of officers than assignment to a special high-risk political event when adequate training, positive psychosocial support and appropriate organization of the event are provided.

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