Predicting Stress in Police Professionals: The Role of Chronotype, Resilience, and General Health

Abstract

Globally, the profession of police is a highly stressful occupation. The present study focuses on investigating how chronotype, resilience, and general health predict stress among police professionals. Data was collected from 428 male and female police professionals through purposive sampling from different districts of Uttar Pradesh, India. Standardised tools were used to assess all variables. A cross-sectional correlational study was conducted where the results indicated moderate levels of stress, general health conditions, resilience, and appropriate sleep quality. Correlational analysis revealed that stress was positively correlated with good sleep, resilience, and poor general health, while it was negatively associated with depressed mood. Regression analysis identified general health and resilience as the strongest predictor of stress, with morningness having smaller predictive value of 42.4% variance in stress levels, highlighting the combined influence of psychological and circadian factors to explain stress among police professionals. This study highlights that despite average sleep quality and high resilience police professional experiences elevated stress due to the demanding nature of their work. Therefore, the findings point to the necessity of a comprehensive approach to stress reduction in policing integrating health promotion, psychological support, and organizational change.