Ten years on, living with the ‘psychological troubles’: retired police officers in Northern Ireland

Abstract

The Psychological Therapies Department within the Police Rehabilitation and Retraining Trust (PRRT) was established in Northern Ireland in 1999 to provide a specialist clinical service to retired police officers who have been psychologically affected through their experiences as a serving officer. The past decade has brought with it a more stable political climate and the prospect of peace in Northern Ireland. The objective of the present study therefore was to establish the current level of psychopathology among retired officers, which in turn would help inform service provision. Out of a randomly selected sample of 3000 retired officers, 972 responded to a postal questionnaire, which incorporated the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12), the Modified PTSD Symptoms Scale -Self Report (MPSS-SR), and the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI). Results found that 25% of respondents viewed retirement as a trigger to their current problems. Overall, 55% of respondents scored clinically on at least one of the psycho...