Understaffed and Overwhelmed: Analyzing Officer Workload and Well-being in a Medium Sized Police Precinct

• In Event: Poster Session 2

Abstract

Staffing shortages among sworn officers remain a concern for police agencies across the United States (Wilson & Grammich, 2024). Understaffed departments result in longer response times (Mourtgos et al., 2024), decreased officer health, performance, and feelings of safety (Vila, 2006; Ricciardelli, 2018), officer stress (Ricciardelli, 2018), among other adverse outcomes. Given the diversity in America’s policing agencies due to the decentralized system, the necessary resources differ among jurisdictions. This workload study gathered data from a variety of sources within a police agency of an eastern city through surveys and semi-structured interviews to assess perceptions of well-being in an understaffed, medium sized jurisdiction. Preliminary analyses indicate officer support for co-response strategies for behavioral health calls, increased training, and decreased administrative duties. Disparities within answers based on race and job (i.e., patrol versus non patrol personnel) emerged. Further insights that emerged from thematic analyses of interview data will be discussed. These findings can help inform future studies assessing police workload.

Authors

• Erika Feeney, University of Maryland

• Toryn Sperry, University of Maryland, College Park

• Frank A. Donohue, University of Maryland, College Park

• Emily Glazener, University of Maryland