{"version":1,"type":"rich","provider_name":"Libsyn","provider_url":"https:\/\/www.libsyn.com","height":90,"width":600,"title":"Policing's Well-Being Problem: Stigma, Isolation And The Retention Crisis","description":"Dr Sarah-Jane Lennie, Associate Professor at the Centre of Excellence for Equity in Uniformed Public Services at Anglia Ruskin University, joins the Forensic Focus Podcast to talk about mental health and well-being in policing \u2014 and the often-overlooked toll on police families. Drawing on 17 years as a police officer before moving into academia, Dr Lennie shares the moment her own mental health forced a career-defining decision, and how that experience shaped her research into the culture of silencing, stigma, and emotional masking that still pervades policing today. She explains why the context of policing \u2014 the trauma, threat, and violence \u2014 is not what harms officers most; it's how they're treated by the organisation afterwards. Dr Lennie describes the isolation partners face, the vicarious trauma they absorb while debriefing their officers, the intergenerational patterns that pull children of police into the same job with the same emotional rules, and the practical support families are asking for. She also discusses the Leapwise National Police Wellbeing Survey, the shift away from &quot;resilience&quot; messaging, the role of the academic working group at Anglia Ruskin, and why properly evaluating interventions is the only way to secure lasting change. #PoliceWellbeing #PoliceFamilies #MentalHealth #PoliceMentalHealth #VicariousTrauma #DigitalForensics #dfir \u23f1\ufe0f Timestamps 00:00 Introducing Dr Sarah-Jane Lennie 02:40 From Policing to Academia 03:51 Mental Health Breaking Point 06:54 Culture of Silence 11:13 Evidence Into Action 12:44 Biggest Challenges Today 13:59 How Families Are Impacted 18:38 Why Families Are Overlooked 19:29 Support Families Need 22:31 Kids and Hidden Trauma 26:42 Stress at Home 28:07 Emotional Silencing 29:23 Punitive Help-Seeking 32:46 Investigations and Isolation 33:32 Academic Working Group 35:32 Evidence Into Practice 46:41 Research Trust Barriers 51:57 Final Message \ud83d\udc49 Visit Forensic Focus: https:\/\/www.forensicfocus.com \ud83c\udfa7 Video\/Transcript:  https:\/\/www.forensicfocus.com\/podcast\/policings-well-being-problem-stigma-isolation-and-the-retention-crisis\/ \ud83d\udcdd Show Notes Centre of Excellence for Equity in Uniformed Public Services (CEEUPS) \u2013  https:\/\/www.aru.ac.uk\/research\/our-research-institutes-and-centres\/centre-of-excellence-for-equity-in-uniformed-public-services Dr Sarah-Jane Lennie (email) \u2013 Sarah-Jane.Lennie@aru.ac.uk National Police Well-Being Survey 2025 \u2013  https:\/\/oscarkilo.org.uk\/national-police-wellbeing-survey-2025-deep-dive-psychological-safety Oscar Kilo Thank You Film \u2013 https:\/\/youtu.be\/f-WUJeQG_E4?si=1PgwYD24n58T0M3z \ud83d\udc49 Follow Forensic Focus RSS | https:\/\/www.forensicfocus.com\/feed YouTube | https:\/\/youtube.com\/@ForensicFocus Podcast | https:\/\/forensicfocus.com\/podcast LinkedIn Page | https:\/\/linkedin.com\/company\/forensicfocus LinkedIn Group | https:\/\/linkedin.com\/groups\/693917 X (Twitter) | https:\/\/x.com\/ForensicFocus Facebook | https:\/\/facebook.com\/forensicfocus Bluesky | https:\/\/bsky.app\/profile\/forensicfocus.bsky.social Instagram | https:\/\/instagram.com\/forensicfocus TikTok | https:\/\/tiktok.com\/@forensicfocus Mastodon | https:\/\/dfir.social\/@forensicfocus ","author_name":"Forensic Focus","author_url":"https:\/\/www.forensicfocus.com","html":"<iframe title=\"Libsyn Player\" style=\"border: none\" src=\"\/\/html5-player.libsyn.com\/embed\/episode\/id\/40777020\/height\/90\/theme\/custom\/thumbnail\/yes\/direction\/forward\/render-playlist\/no\/custom-color\/88AA3C\/\" height=\"90\" width=\"600\" scrolling=\"no\"  allowfullscreen webkitallowfullscreen mozallowfullscreen oallowfullscreen msallowfullscreen><\/iframe>","thumbnail_url":"https:\/\/assets.libsyn.com\/secure\/content\/200566065"}