Lack of professional recognition: main reason for stress in military police

INTRODUCTION: Military police officers play a crucial role in contemporary society, which is marked by the increase in criminality. Therefore, these professionals are constantly under pressure, both socially and professionally, so occupational stress is something present in their routine. OBJECTIVES: To investigate the stress levels of military police officers in the municipality of Fortaleza and its metropolitan region. METHODS: This was a cross-sectional, quantitative study, conducted with 325 military police officers (53.1% men; 20> 51 years old) who belonged to military police battalions. The Police Stress Questionnaire was used to identify the stress level, following the Likert scale from 1 to 7; the higher the score, the higher the stress level. RESULTS: The results indicated that the lack of professional recognition is the main stress factor among military police officers (Median = 7.00). Other items were relevant to the quality of life of these professionals, which are: “risks of injuries or wounds resulting from the profession”, “working on days off”, “lack of human resources”, “excessive bureaucracy in the police service”, “ having the perception that we are pressured to give up free time ”,“ lawsuits resulting from police service,” “going to court, relationship with the judicial actors, ” and “use of inadequate equipment for the service,” respectively (Median = 6. 00). CONCLUSIONS: The stress of these professionals is organizational in nature and comes from factors that transcend the violence with which they deal.