Police Pandemic Stress: Investigating the Roles of Supervisory Status and Organizational Support among Police Officers in Mainland China and Taiwan

The COVID-19 pandemic heightened occupational stress for police officers across jurisdictions. Drawing on survey data from officers in mainland China and Taiwan, this study examines how supervisory status and perceived organizational support shaped pandemic-related stress in two culturally similar but otherwise distinct societies. Data collected in 2020–2021 from 600 officers in a major mainland Chinese city and 516 officers in a major Taiwanese municipality show that mainland Chinese officers reported higher overall stress alongside stronger perceptions of organizational support, which mitigated pandemic-related strain. Supervisory status was not independently associated with increased stress in mainland China but was linked to significantly higher stress in Taiwan, where organizational support was perceived as weaker. The findings suggest that during crisis conditions, the emergency governance structure plays an important role in shaping the protective capacity of organizational support and the stress burden associated with supervisory roles among police officers.