Résumé
Routine exposure to violence in the community, and witnessing the harm and death of others while on-the-job places police officers at risk of developing traumatic stress over time. Research indicates that operational stress experienced by the officer can “spillover” to his or her home life, and a spouse or significant other can become traumatized by association, a concept known as secondary trauma. The direct impact of operational stress on the individual officer has been examined, and studies that consider its effects on police spouses and the marital relationship are based primarily on survey data. The quality of police marriages appears to be dependent on the ability of the couple to cope effectively with this “spillover” effect. The present study includes the stories of eight female spouses of police officers, and explores their perspectives on the experience of being married to a police officer who encounters operational stress, and the impact of stress and coping strategies on the marital relationship. Data were collected using the Life Story interview method, the stories were transcribed verbatim and narrative summaries were created from the transcripts. Coding of the data was done using qualitative data analysis software and a thematic analysis was conducted, resulting in the creation of nine themes and 18 subthemes. These themes illustrate the unique stressors arising from policing, and the individual and relational coping strategies used within the couple relationship to foster resilience and maintain the marriage over time. The results do fit the concept of the spillover effect and the theory of dyadic coping, indicating that individuals within couple relationships do not cope with stress in isolation. Social support is viewed as a buffer against the development of traumatic stress, and findings from this study will help to inform the creation of new treatment and prevention initiatives aimed at enhancing support for police families, other first-responder groups, and couples that experience elevated stress levels over an extended period of time..