A Big Five personality profile of police officers: Comparative analysis Romania–Moldova

Abstract

Personality factors play a significant role in determining the choice of a profession. Military organizations select workers based on specific personality traits. The purpose of this study is to identify the personality traits prevalent among the sampled police officers and to examine the factors that may influence the development of these traits, such as age, gender, and nationality. The research sample consists of 100 police officers (50 Romanian and 50 Moldovan), who work in operative structures. Personality structure was assessed using the Zuckerman-Kuhlman Personality Questionnaire targeting five personality factors: impulsive sensation seeking, sociability, neuroticism-anxiety, aggression-hostility, and activity. The results show that police officers are mostly sociable and active people. Age is negatively associated with activity (p<0.01) and impulsive sensation seeking (p<0.05), and positively with anxiety (p<0.01). Also, there are statistically significant differences between Romanian and Moldovan police officers, regarding sociability (p<0.01). Regarding the influence of personality by the gender factor, no significant differences were recorded between women and men (the uniformity of workers being specific to the military organizational environment). The results obtained in this research provide important information about the personality of police officers, useful both in the personnel selection process and in the psychological assistance of police workers.