Levels of Substance Use and Willingness to Use the Employee Assistance Program

PurposeThis study investigates the relationship between police officer's willingness to use Employee Assistance Program (EAP) and their perceptions about stress and help-seeking in policing, considering the effect of gender and ethnicity in this association.Design/methodology/approachA survey of 431 Illinois police officers is used to measure officer's perceptions about help-seeking and organizational stressors. The conditional PROCESS modeling (Hayes, 2012) was employed to analyze the hypothesized mediation model. The ANOVA test was used to determent the effect of gender and ethnicity on organizational stressors in policing.FindingsFindings suggest police officer's willingness to use EAP is shaped by the perceived negative effect of stress on promotion through the mediator, confidence in their departments to receive adequate assistance, with noticeable gender and ethnic differences. The analysis demonstrated that female police officers feel stressed because of unfair promotional opportunities and poor relationships with supervisors. Female police officers are less willing to apply for the EAP services to mitigate stress than male police officers. The findings reveal that ethnicity is a significant predictor of the police officers' willingness to apply for EAP services to mitigate stress.Research limitations/implicationsThe current study is limited by its focus on only one police department located in the Illinois, USA. This may limit the generalizability of the results. The cross-sectional nature of data used to draw conclusions and variation in departments' characteristics and compositions could influence results.Practical implicationsThe research has practical implications for those who are interested to understand organizational stressors and perceptions on help-seeking in policing. This study provides suggestions for police administrators to make effort in creating more sensitive working environment to reduce stressors for female police officers and representatives of ethnic groups.Originality/valueThe research unveils the significance of officer's confidence in their departments in modifying their willingness to use EAP, revealing the effect of organizational stressors on confidence. The study adds empirical evidence to existing research on impact of gender and ethnicity on their willingness to use EAP.

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Integrated employee assistance program/managed behavioral health plan utilization by persons with substance use disorders

Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment ◽

10.1016/j.jsat.2010.11.009 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 40 (3) ◽

pp. 299-306 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Elizabeth S. Levy Merrick ◽

Dominic Hodgkin ◽

Deirdre Hiatt ◽

Constance M. Horgan ◽

Shelly F. Greenfield ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Substance Use ◽

Behavioral Health ◽

Substance Use Disorders ◽

Health Plan ◽

Employee Assistance Program ◽

Employee Assistance ◽

Assistance Program ◽

Managed Behavioral Health

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Perceptions of an Employee Assistance Program and Employees' Willingness to Participate

The Journal of Applied Behavioral Science ◽

10.1177/002188638802400409 ◽

1988 ◽

Vol 24 (4) ◽

pp. 423-438 ◽

Cited By ~ 28

Author(s):

Michael M. Harris ◽

Mary L. Fennell

Keyword(s):

Alcohol Consumption ◽

Employee Assistance Program ◽

Willingness To Participate ◽

Employee Assistance ◽

Assistance Program ◽

Assistance Programs ◽

Reasons For Drinking ◽

Related Stress ◽

Willingness To Use ◽

Job Related Stress

Little empirical research has examined employees' perceptions of employee assistance programs (EAPs) and their willingness to participate in them. A sample of 150 employees of a white collar firm was surveyed to determine the responden' attitudes, perceptions, and willingness to use various resources for help with alcohol abuse and dependence, their beliefs about the causes and stigma of alcoholism and reasons for drinking, and their levels of alcohol consumption. The results indicate that men and women appear equally willing to use EAPs, although they differ somewhat in their perceptions of and attitudes toward them. The authors also found that willingness to obtain help from an EAP was greatly influenced by a respondent's familiarity with the program, perceptions of its trustworthiness and opportunities for personal attention, level of alcohol consumption, and beliefs about drinking to reduce job-related stress.

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Commissioner's Policy Statement No. 9: DMHAS Employee Assistance Program Program Guideline

PsycEXTRA Dataset ◽

10.1037/e339262004-001 ◽

1996 ◽

Author(s):

Keyword(s):

Employee Assistance Program ◽

Policy Statement ◽

Employee Assistance ◽

Assistance Program

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Living and Dying in an Employee Assistance Program

Journal of Drug Issues ◽

10.1177/002204269502500209 ◽

1995 ◽

Vol 25 (2) ◽

pp. 363-378 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Norman K. Denzin

Keyword(s):

Natural History ◽

Personal Narratives ◽

Employee Assistance Program ◽

Study Analysis ◽

Employee Assistance ◽

Assistance Program ◽

Case Study Analysis ◽

Midwestern University

A contextual natural history, case study analysis of what happened to an Employee Assistance Program (EAP) at Midwestern University is offered. Personal narratives depicting the consequences of this change are presented and analyzed.

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