Does Shift Work Affect Burnout and Sleep Quality Among Australian Police Officers?

Abstract

The safety of police officers and the community is compromised by shift work and work demands. Retention rates are declining globally, and recruiting new police officers is increasingly challenging. A contributing factor is organizational stressors, with nightshifts potentially increasing the risk of disturbed sleep, increased stress, and burnout; 642 Australian police officers answered a cross-sectional survey: 379 worked nightshifts and 263 dayshifts. Regardless of shift, a majority reported their stress (70%) and burnout (60%) as ranging from moderate to extremely high. Contrary to initial expectations, nightshift work did not significantly deteriorate sleep quality or intensify stress and burnout. These findings suggest that excessive workloads and the stressful environments encountered by police officers may primarily drive the burnout process. Additional research is required to determine the underlying factors and devise strategies to alleviate the adverse effects on the physical and mental health of police officers.