ABSTRACT

There is a positive revolution sweeping psychology that emphasises how individuals get the most out of life and manage to stay healthy and happy in the face of adversity. Simultaneously, in Australia and throughout the world, there is an increasing emphasis on how to cultivate police wellbeing and resilience to stress and trauma. Fresh solutions are urgently needed to address complex issues underpinning unsustainable rates of police medical leave, retirement, and psychological stress that adversely impact wellbeing and capacity to safeguard civilians. In this chapter, we capitalise on Self-Determination Theory to report on the results of three mixed-methods studies to identify the nature and correlates of police wellbeing, and present the implications of the findings for enabling police wellbeing.