This paper reports findings from two studies that explore the role of a spiritual framework in buffering toxic experiences police officers encounter in the course of their duty. The first study was an interview of 33 police officers who were active in their law enforcement career. The officers responded to eight core questions about their police work, spiritual history, and spiritual beliefs. Three themes emerged from the content analysis. The second study was a quantitative investigation of psychological performance using Electroencephalography measures. These officers, who were identified with high levels of spirituality in the interview study, had low levels of perceived stress, high levels on the Transcendence dimension, fast executive processing, and high levels of brain integration. These studies suggest that levels of spirituality are grounded in mental and brain functioning, and so could be systematically cultured to help officers deal effectively with the toxic nature of police work.

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Operational policing is demanding and threatening. Repeatedly dealing with death, serious injury, horrific crime scenes, the need to be constantly alert whether on or off duty, and being ostracised by communities, friends and family, are only some examples of what officers encounter. All take their toll on police officers: on their health, fitness and well-being, and on their view of people and the world. The toll also extends to those who are served by these officers. While this toll is recognised, there are still high levels of sickness absence, ill health, alcohol/drug-related problems as well as suicides. These are clear illustrations of the challenging nature of policing. If we look at the deeper issues of these challenges — nature of policing and its struggle for good; not being recognised as whole people; not being treated as valuable parts of a community; the reality of facing death and destructiveness on a daily basis — we see that, at a fundamental level, these have a spiritual component to them. This is an important but often unrecognised aspect of policing. Forces emphasise the physical and mental well-being of officers but neglect their spiritual well-being. There are sound reasons for a greater focus on this area. It is morally appropriate to address this area. This paper draws from two PhDs. It identifies the issues related to coping strategies and officer fitness, highlights how the spiritual dimension may assist in the development of coping strategies, and identifies how these issues might be taken forward.

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Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to deepen conceptual understanding of the spiritual components of resilience. Design/methodology/approach – A conceptual paper drawing on research the authors have been conducting on resilience within the police community for a combined period of over half-a-century. Findings – A more holistic conceptualisation of resilience and particularly a more detailed and accurate picture of the spiritual aspects to resilience which is applicable to a wide variety of public and private sector leadership situations, not just those within the police. Practical implications – The paper provides an increased appreciation of resilience which the authors hope will lead to more practical research in this area, with the longer term goal being to impact positively on practical workplace issues of major current concern in a wide variety of workplaces across the world. Originality/value – The paper's contribution is to promote the importance of resilience, provide a greater theoretical understanding of holistic perspectives of resilience and further develop the spiritual component of resilience. This contribution is important because many leaders currently have a limited appreciation of all the aspects of resilience.