Officer suicide and depression is a serious problem in law enforcement. A national study using data of the National Occupational Mortality Surveillance found that police died from suicide 2.4 times as often as from homicides. Though depression resulting from traumatic experiences is often the cause, routine work and life stressors—serving hostile communities, working long shifts, lack of family or departmental support—are frequent motivators too. In executing the mission and vision of the organization, the FBINAA will examine, study, and publish reports on a variety of factors to include:
- Suicide rates, trends, and high-risk groups
- Risk factors and causal agents
- Scientific literature on resilience and suicide prevention
- Law Enforcement resiliency efforts including: programs having a direct, indirect, or enabling relationship to resilience and suicide prevention; delivery methods; utilization rates; measures of effectiveness; Input from command senior enlisted leadership; expert opinion