The private police : – A qualitative study regarding how police officers are affected by their work in their personal life

This study aims to understand how police officers in Sweden are affected by their line of work in their personal life. The study is based on qualitative research where the empirical material has been gathered from interviews with Swedish police officers. A total of eight police officers have contributed to this study. The main theoretical concept used in this study is Göran Ahrnes notion of the “organizational centaur”. Alongside this concept, the essay also covers police culture and organizational concept. The results of this study reveal that several police officers find it hard to combine their line of work with their personal life. Not only does the occupation affect the police officers themselves, it also affects their family and acquaintances. Moreover, the results demonstrate how police officers relate to their profession in their spare time. Finally, the results of this study express how changes within the police organization has affected the work situation for many police officers in Sweden.