INFORMATION

Psicothema was founded in Asturias (northern Spain) in 1989, and is published jointly by the Psychology Faculty of the University of Oviedo and the Psychological Association of the Principality of Asturias (Colegio Oficial de Psicólogos del Principado de Asturias).
We currently publish four issues per year, which accounts for some 100 articles annually. We admit work from both the basic and applied research fields, and from all areas of Psychology, all manuscripts being anonymously reviewed prior to publication.

PSICOTHEMA
  • Director: Laura E. Gómez Sánchez
  • Frequency:
         February | May | August | November
  • ISSN: 0214-9915
  • Digital Edition:: 1886-144X
CONTACT US
  • Address: Ildelfonso Sánchez del Río, 4, 1º B
    33001 Oviedo (Spain)
  • Phone: 985 285 778
  • Fax: 985 281 374
  • Email:psicothema@cop.es

Perception of Health, Resilience, and Engagement in Spanish Police Officers During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Beatriz Talavera-Velasco1, Lourdes Luceño-Moreno2, Yolanda García-Albuerne2 and Jesús Martín-García2

1 CES Cardenal Cisneros, and
2 Universidad Complutense de Madrid

Background: During the COVID-19 pandemic, the police force was one of the institutions that was most exposed to possible infections, in addition to suffering stressful situations that affect health. This study aims to independently assess the relationship between demographic, work, and COVID-19 variables, and resilience, engagement, and the perception of health, as well as to evaluate which variables are more important when predicting health perceptions. Method: 640 Spanish police officers were evaluated through a cross-sectional design and online survey. Results: The perception of the lack of personal protective equipment, believing that it is easy to become infected with COVID-19, or working as a police officer were associated with low levels of engagement and resilience and a worse perception of health. More years of experience in the police force was associated with worse health and lower levels of engagement and resilience. Engagement and resilience would be protective variables of health. Conclusions: It is necessary to promote practices related to engagement and resilience in the police force. The discussion emphasizes that more experienced police officers demonstrate less engagement and resilience.

Salud Percibida, Resiliencia y Compromiso en Policías Españoles durante la Pandemia por COVID-19. Antecedentes: durante la pandemia por COVID-19, el colectivo policial ha sido uno de los más expuestos a posibles contagios, además de sufrir situaciones estresantes que afectan a la salud. Esta investigación tiene como objetivo evaluar independientemente la relación entre las variables demográficas, del trabajo y COVID-19, y la resiliencia, el engagement y la percepción sobre la salud, así como evaluar qué variables tienen más peso a la hora de predecir la percepción sobre la salud. Método: se evaluó a 640 policías españoles mediante un diseño transversal y encuesta online. Resultados: la falta de equipos de protección individual, creer que es fácil infectarse por COVID-19 o trabajar como agente se asocian a niveles bajos de engagement y resiliencia y peor percepción de la salud. El aumento en los años de experiencia en el cuerpo policial se asocia a peor salud y a bajos niveles de engagement y resiliencia. El engagement y la resiliencia serían variables protectoras de la salud. Conclusiones: es necesario fomentar prácticas relacionadas con el engagement y la resiliencia en el colectivo policial. Se destaca que los policías con más experiencia muestran menos engagement y resiliencia.

PDF

Impact factor 2022:  JCR WOS 2022:  FI = 3.6 (Q2);  JCI = 1.21 (Q1) / SCOPUS 2022:  SJR = 1.097;  CiteScore = 6.4 (Q1)