Teenage suicide in King County, Washington. I. Rates of suicide for 26 years

The population-adjusted rate of teenage suicide in King County, Washington, was reviewed for the 26 years from 1959 to 1984. For the entire period, the rate did not change significantly. An abrupt change did occur during the middle of this period, but, for reasons discussed in the text, this may well represent a change in procedures and philosophy of death certification rather than a real change in rate. Reasons for the apparent discrepancy with national statistics are discussed.     

Victims' perceptions of police response to domestic violence incidents

This study examined the nature of police response to domestic violence incidents with a focus on the identification of areas of police intervention that female victims of domestic abuse find “most” helpful and “least” helpful. The first part of the study was based on the analysis of a random sample of incident reports of domestic abuse cases recorded in 2000 and 2001. These reports were examined to obtain information about the characteristics of domestic abuse victims and summary information about the incidents of domestic abuse offenses. The second stage of the research study involved a telephone survey conducted with a random sample of fifty female domestic abuse victims who called the police. The study examined female victims' perceptions of how the police responded to the domestic abuse incidents, how helpful or not so helpful victims found the police to be when they responded to their calls, and how their cases were handled by the legal system.     

Job demands, job resources, and burnout among police officers

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between job demands, job resources, and burnout, and to examine if burnout could predict both work and health-related outcomes among police officers. The participants were 223 Norwegian police officers, and data were collected using a questionnaire. The study was part of a national survey of both health care and non-health care professions. The overall level of burnout was low among police officers compared to other occupational groups tested in Norway. Both job demands and job resources were related to burnout, especially work-family pressure was an important predictor for all of the three burnout dimensions. Burnout predicted individual outcomes, such as psychosomatic complaints and satisfaction with life, as well as work outcomes, such as job satisfaction, intention to quit, and organizational commitment. Suggestions for potential interventions to reduce burnout and negative individual and organizational consequences are presented.