Three out of ten Mossos agents have mental health problems

Barcelona35% of Mossos d'Esquadra agents suffer from depressive symptomatology, 39% stress, and 36% anxiety. This is one of the main conclusions of a study conducted by Ramon Llull University that has been published by the scientific journal Frontiers in psychiatry. Apparently, it might seem that the critical situations that agents have to face on the street could be a significant trigger for mental health, but the study reveals that internal factors such as lack of institutional support or bureaucracy have an even greater impact.

The study, conducted in 2024, involved agents from citizen security, traffic, public order, and investigation. The unit that presents the highest stress levels for organizational or operational reasons is traffic. In general terms, the police region with the highest incidence of this mental health problem is Girona, followed by Metropolitan South. On the other hand, the one with the lowest stress levels is Terres de l'Ebre.

In addition to Blanquerna, the study also involved the Portuguese Catholic University and Nottingham Trent University, in collaboration with the Mossos unions SAP-FEPOL and SME-FEPOL, and the Foundation for Public Safety. The work reveals that 12.31% of the force members have mild depression, 10.96% moderate, 5.82% severe, and the same percentage, extremely severe. Regarding anxiety, 11.64% have mild symptomatology, 13.13% moderate anxiety, 6.22% severe, and 5.82% extremely severe.

Stress factors

Among the main causes generating stress, the union highlights that the study points to a lack of staff, a lack of resources, excessive bureaucracy, lack of training, unequal distribution of work responsibilities, or an excess of administrative tasks.

Regarding anxiety, the results have shown that it affects 33.15% of the collective. The feeling of always having to prove one's worth, that different rules are applied depending on the person, or constant changes in policy or legislation are other factors affecting the mental health of the bodies. In relation to how these situations are faced, the study concludes that tools are lacking and that those affected have difficulty relaxing. The study started with a population of 8,000 professionals, union members, and responses were collected from a total of 741 agents.