Assessing the VIA Character Strengths as a Preventative Intervention in UK Policing

The need to improve police officer wellbeing in the UK seems indisputable. Academic literature has demonstrated unequivocally that those working within policing roles are susceptible to poor wellbeing due to both occupational and operational stressors. Despite the vast body of literature documenting the stressors, UK police wellbeing research is still very much lacking regarding responding to the issue of poor wellbeing. There are positive psychology interventions designed to protect wellbeing, for instance mindfulness, stress management and resilience training and in the few studies where such interventions have been tested in policing there are positive outcomes for officers who engage with such programmes. Some of the issues with the current positive psychology interventions relate to implementing the interventions due to the commitment of time for officers. That said, there are other positive psychology approaches which have not been tested with police officers and might present a more operational ready intervention. One such approach is that of the VIA (Values in Action) character strengths approach, which has been found to improve wellbeing, reduce symptoms of poor mental health, and increase resilience in other populations. The present study serves as an initial scoping study to determine whether VIA character strengths could serve as a useful intervention in UK policing. Through a mixed methods design, nine Police Officers in England and Wales took part in an online psychometric assessment to determine their character strengths, which was followed by a 7-day reflective diary intervention, and then a semi structured interview. The findings of this initial scoping study demonstrate that VIA character strengths may be a useful intervention to study further within policing. Three main themes emerged which demonstrated that the use of certain strengths can promote and protect wellbeing. All participants outlined the positive impact of engaging in the intervention. The implications and directions for future research in developing this intervention are discussed.