Law enforcement officers' risk perceptions toward on-duty motor-vehicle events

Details

• Personal Author:
  Heick RJ ; Hendricks S ; Konda S ; Tiesman, Hope M.
• Description:
  Purpose: Motor-vehicle related events (MVEs) are the leading cause of on-duty death for law enforcement officers, yet little is known about how officers view this significant job hazard. This paper explores officers' motor-vehicle risk perception and examines how prior on-duty MVEs and the death or injury of a fellow officer influences this perception. Design/methodology/approach: A state-wide random sample of 136 law enforcement agencies was drawn using publically accessible databases, stratified on type and size of agency. Sixty agencies agreed to participate and a cross-sectional questionnaire was distributed to 1,466 officers. Using 6-point Likert scales, composite scores for motor-vehicle and intentional violence risk perception were derived. A linear regression multivariable model was used to examine factors affecting motor-vehicle risk perception. Findings: Motor-vehicle risk perception scores were significantly higher than intentional violence scores. A prior on-duty motor-vehicle crash, prior roadside incident, or knowledge of fellow officer's injury or death from a MVE significantly increased motor-vehicle risk perception scores. After controlling for potential confounders though, only prior on-duty crashes and roadside incidents impacted motor-vehicle risk perception. Research limitations/implications: The study comprised primarily small, rural agencies and generalizability may be limited. Also, although the data were collected anonymously, reporting and response biases may affect these findings. Originality/value: This study involved a large and diverse cohort of officers and explored motor-vehicle risk perception. A better understanding of officers' risk perceptions will assist in the development and implementation of occupational injury prevention programs, training, and policy. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Automobiles Emergency Responders Law Enforcement Mortality Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Author Keywords: Risk Perception Emergency-responders Law-enforcement Law-enforcement-workers Law Enforcement Mortality-data Mortality-rates Motor-vehicle Crash Motor-vehicles Occupational Injury Police-officers Surveillance

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• ISSN:
  1363-951X
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Massachusetts ; OSHA Region 1 ; OSHA Region 3 ; West Virginia
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DSR - Division of Safety Research
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Volume:
  38
• Issue:
  3
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20046484
• Citation:
  Policing 2015 Jul-Sep; 38(3):563-577
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2015
• NORA Priority Area:
  Public Safety
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Source Full Name:
  Policing: An International Journal of Police Strategies and Management
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:7c2a63973764fab17f3db103bdd526c4c296545fa51b336f4a0bb3f32994edcc0ff0008354f4a8a217ed0b0790f1677c6f9e5d77659b991429ad3e38740fda65
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/201532/cdc_201532_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 223.76 KB ]