Samenvatting

This study provides an in-depth analysis of the resilience of criminal investigators in the Netherlands. Observational studies within three criminal investigation teams and 45 interviews with investigators and team leaders revealed that confrontations with human suffering, decision-making, and dirty and physically demanding circumstances at the crime scene can sometimes be (very) challenging. However, investigators have relatively little difficulty with the strain resulting from the operational stressors to which they are exposed during investigations. They know how to apply different coping strategies to reduce stress. However, this does not apply to organisational stressors. The way in which their work is organised regularly causes tension, dissatisfaction and frustration. The research highlights that investigators suffer more from these organisational stressors than from the stressors that can be associated with criminal investigations. Attention should therefore be focused on strengthening their ‘internal resilience’, the article makes a number of recommendations to support this.