The Merchant's Wife (1918) by Boris Kustodiev

A wife is a female partner in a marital relationship. The rights and obligations of the wife regarding her spouse(s) and others, and her status in the community and in law, varies between cultures and has varied over time.

Origin and etymology[link]

The word is of Germanic origin, from Proto-Germanic *wībam, "woman". In Middle English it had the form wif, and in Old English wīf, "woman or wife". It is related to Modern German Weib (woman, female),^[1] and may derive ultimately from the Indo-European root ghwībh- "shame; pudenda" (cf. Tocharian B kwīpe and Tocharian A kip, each meaning "female pudenda", with clear sexual overtones)^[2] The original meaning of "wife" as simply "woman", unconnected with marriage, is preserved in words like "midwife" and "fishwife".

Related terminology[link]

The term "wife" seems to be a close term to bride, the latter is a female participant in a wedding ceremony, while a wife is a married woman after the wedding, during her marriage. Historically, her male partner was known as the bridegroom during the wedding, and within the marriage is called her husband. Traditionally, the bride or her family may have brought her husband a dowry, or the husband or his family may have needed to pay a bride price to the family of his bride, or both were exchanged between the families; the dowry not only supported the establishment of a household, but also served as a condition that if the husband committed grave offenses upon his wife, the dowry had to be returned to the wife or her family; for the time of the marriage, they were made inalienable by the husband.^[3] A former wife whose spouse is deceased is a widow, and may be left with a dower (often a third or a half of his estate^{[citation needed]}) to support her as dowager. A wife may, in some cultures and times, share the title of her husband, without having gained that title by her own right.^{[citation needed]}

Wife refers especially to the institutionalized form in relation to the spouse and offspring, unlike mother, a term that puts a woman into the context of her children. Also compare the similar sounding midwife, a person assisting in childbirth ("Mother midnight" emphasizes to a midwife's power over life and death).^[4] In some societies, especially historically, a concubine was a woman who was in an ongoing, usually matrimonially oriented relationship with a man who could not be married to her, often because of a difference in social status.

Differences in cultures[link]

Antiquity[link]

Many traditions like a dower, dowry and bride price have long traditions in antiquity. The exchange of any item or value goes back to the oldest sources, and the wedding ring likewise was always used as a symbol for keeping faith to a person.

Christianity[link]

Historical status[link]

Christian cultures are guided by the Bible in regard to their view on the position of a wife in society as well as her marriage. The New Testament condemns divorce for both men and women (1 Cor 7:10–11), and assumes monogamy on the part of the husband: the woman is to have her "own" husband, not share him with other wives (1 Cor 7:2). As a result, divorce was relatively uncommon in the pre-modern West, particularly in the medieval and early modern period, and husbands in the Roman, later medieval and early modern period did not publicly take more than one wife. However, since the New Testament made no pronouncements about wives' property rights, in practice these were influenced more by secular laws than religion. Most influential in the pre-modern West was Roman law, except in the English-speaking world where English common law emerged in the High Middle Ages. In addition, local customary law influenced wives' property rights; as a result wives' property rights in the pre-modern West varied widely from region to region.

In pre-modern times, it was unusual to marry for love alone,^[5] although it became an ideal in literature by the early modern period.^[6] Roman law required brides to be at least 12 years old, a standard adopted by Roman Catholic canon law. In Roman law, first marriages to brides aged 12–25 required both the consent of the bride and her father, but by the late antique period Roman law permitted women over 25 to marry without parental consent.^[7] The New Testament allows a widow to marry any Christian she chooses (1 Cor 7:39). In the 12th century, the Roman Catholic Church drastically changed legal standards for marital consent by allowing daughters over 12 and sons over 14 to marry without their parents' approval, even if their marriage was made clandestinely.^[8] Parish studies have confirmed that late medieval women did sometimes marry against their parents' approval.^[9] The Roman Catholic Church's policy of considering clandestine marriages and marriages made without parental consent to be valid was controversial; in the 16th century both the French monarchy and the Lutheran church sought to end these practices, with limited success.^[10]

Because wives' property rights and daughters' inheritance rights varied widely from region to region due to differing legal systems, the amount of property a wife might own varied greatly. Under Roman law, daughters inherited equally from their parents if no will was produced,^[11] under the English common law system, which dates to the later medieval period, daughters and younger sons were usually excluded from landed property if no will was produced. In addition, Roman law recognized wives' property as legally separate from husbands's property,^[12] as did some legal systems in parts of Europe and colonial Latin America. In contrast, English common law moved to a system where a wife with a living husband ("feme couvert") could own little property in her own name.^[13] Unable to easily support herself, marriage was very important to most women's economic status. This problem has been dealt with extensively in literature, where the most important reason for women's limited power was the denial of equal education and equal property rights for females.^[14] The situation was assessed by the English conservative moralist Sir William Blackstone: "The husband and wife are one, and the husband is the one."^[15] Married women's property rights in the English-speaking world improved with the Married Women's Property Act 1882 and similar legal changes, which allowed wives with living husbands to own property in their own names. Until late in the 20th century, women could in some regions or times sue a man for wreath money when he took her virginity without taking her as his wife.^[16]

If a woman did not want to marry, another option was entering a convent as a nun.^[17] to become a "bride of Christ",^[18] a state in which her chastity and economic survival would be protected.^[18][19] Both a wife and a nun wore veils, which proclaimed their state of protection by the rights of marriage.^[20] Much more significant than the option of becoming a nun, was the option of non-religious spinsterhood in the West. As first demonstrated quantitatively by John Hajnal, in the 19th and early 20th centuries the percentage of non-clerical Western women who never married was typically as high as 10–15%, a prevalence of female celibacy never yet documented for any other major traditional civilization.^[21] In addition, early modern Western women married at quite high ages (typically mid to late 20s) relative to other major traditional cultures. The high age at first marriage for Western women has been shown by many parish reconstruction studies to be a traditional Western marriage pattern that dates back at least as early as the mid-16th century.^[22]

Contemporary status[link]

In the 20th century, the role of the wife in Western marriage changed in two major ways; the first was the breakthrough from an "institution to companionate marriage";^[23] for the first time, wives became distinct legal entities, and were allowed their own property and allowed to sue. Until then, wife and husband were a single legal entity, but only the husband was allowed to exercise this right. The second change was the drastic alteration of middle and upper class family life, when in the 1960s these wives began to work outside their home, and with the social acceptance of divorces the single-parent family, and stepfamily or "blended family" as a more "individualized marriage".^[24]

Today, a woman may wear a wedding ring in order to show her status as a wife.^[25]

In a female same-sex marriage, both spouses may refer to themselves as "wife"; ironically, in a male same-sex marriage, both spouses may refer to themselves as "wife".

In Western countries today, married women usually have an education, a profession and they (or their husbands) can take time off from their work in a legally procured system of ante-natal care, statutory maternity leave, and they may get maternity pay or a maternity allowance.^[26] The status of marriage, as opposed to unmarried pregnant women, allows the spouse to be responsible for the child, and to speak on behalf of his/her wife; a husband is also responsible for the wife's child in states where he is automatically assumed to be the biological father.^[27] Vice versa, a wife has more legal authority in some cases when she speaks on behalf of a spouse than she would have if they were not married, e.g. when her spouse is in a coma after an accident, a wife may have the right of advocacy.^[28] If they divorce, she also might receive—or pay—alimony (see Law and divorce around the world).

Islam[link]

Women in Islam have a range of rights and obligations (see main article Rights and obligations of spouses in Islam). Marriage takes place on the basis of a marriage contract. Forcing a marriage is absolutely forbidden by Islam.^[29] The arranged marriage is relatively common in traditionalist families, whether in Muslim countries or as first or second generation immigrants elsewhere.

Women in general are supposed to wear specific clothes, as stated by the hadith, like the hijab, which may take different styles depending on the culture of the country, where traditions may seep in.^{[Quran 24:31][Quran 33:59][30]} The husband must pay a mahr to the bride, which is similar to the dower.^[31]

Traditionally, the wife has had a high esteem in Islam as a protected, chaste person that manages the household and the family. She has the ever important role of raising the children and bringing up the next generation of Muslims. In Islam, it is highly recommended that the wife remains at home. The husband is obligated to spend on the wife for all of her needs while she is not obligated to spend even if she is wealthy. The Prophet commanded all Muslim men to treat their wives well. In fact in the hadith he even said "The best of you are those who are best to their wives".

Traditionally, Muslim married women are not distinguished from unmarried women by an outward symbol (such as a wedding ring). However women's wedding rings have recently been adopted in the past thirty years from the Western culture.^[32]

Hinduism[link]

In Indo-Aryan languages, a wife is known as Patni, which means a woman who shares everything in this world with her husband and he does the same, including their identity. Decisions are ideally made in mutual consent. A wife usually takes care of anything inside her household, including the family's health, the children's education, a parent's needs.

In Tamil, a wife is known as a Manaivee. Manai means "house", and manaivee "head of a household". The majority of Hindu marriages in rural and traditional North India are arranged marriages, which means parents that have a son will search for parents with a daughter, through relatives, neighbors, or even brokers. Once they find a suitable family (family of same caste, culture and financial status), the boy and the girl see and talk to each other to decide the final outcome. In recent times however the western culture has had significant influence and the new generations resort to marrying just anyone good looking whenever they want to fall in love.

Indian law has recognized sitesh rape, sexual, emotional or verbal abuse of a woman by her husband as crimes. The Britannica mentions that "Until quite recently, the only property of which a Hindu woman was the absolute owner was her strīdhana, consisting mainly of wedding gifts and gifts from relatives."^[33] In Hinduism, a wife is known as a Patni or Ardhangini (similar to "the better half") meaning a part of the husband or his family. She takes all cares of her husband and family. In Hinduism, a woman or man can get married, but only have one wife or husband respectively. Commonly, a wife wears vermillion powder on her forehead to show her status as a married woman.

Buddhism and Chinese folk religions[link]

China's family laws were changed by the Communist revolution; and in 1950, the People's Republic of China enacted a comprehensive marriage law including provisions giving the spouses equal rights with regard to ownership and management of marital property.^[34]

Japan[link]

In Japan, before enactment of the Meiji Civil Code of 1898, all of the woman's property such as land or money passed to her husband except for personal clothing and a mirror stand.^[33] See Women in Japan, Law of Japan

Expectation of fidelity[link]

There is a widely held expectation, which has existed for most of recorded history and in most cultures, that a wife is expected not to have sexual relations with anyone other than her spouse(s). A breach of this expectation of fidelity is commonly referred to as adultery or extramarital sex. Historically, adultery has been considered to be a serious offense, sometimes a crime. Even if that is not so, it may still have legal consequences, particularly a divorce. Adultery may be a factor to consider in a property settlement, it may affect the status of children, the custody of children, &c; moreover, adultery can result in social ostracism in some parts of the world.

See also[link]

Look up wife in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

• Marriage
• Husband
• Wife Acceptance Factor

References[link]

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Wife

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German state police officer in Hamburg

A Royal Canadian Mounted Police officer in the force's distinctive dress uniform.

Mounted Tourist-Police officers in Petra, Jordan.

A group of Garda officers in the Republic of Ireland.

A motor officer patrolling in Arizona on a motorcycle.

A police officer (also known as a policeman or policewoman, and constable in some forces, particularly in the United Kingdom^[1][2] and other Commonwealth nations) is a warranted employee of a police force. In the United States, "officer" is the formal name of the lowest police rank; in many other countries "officer" is a generic term not specifying a particular rank, and the lowest rank is often "constable". Police officers are generally charged with the apprehension of criminals and the prevention and detection of crime, and the maintenance of public order. Police officers may be sworn to an oath, and have the power to arrest people and detain them for a limited time, along with other duties and powers.

Some police officers may also be trained in special duties, such as counter-terrorism, surveillance, child protection, VIP protection, and investigation techniques into major crime, including fraud, rape, murder and drug trafficking.

Duties and functions[link]

Responsibilities of a police officer are varied, and may differ greatly from within one political context to another. Typical duties relate to keeping the peace, law enforcement, protection of people and property, and the investigation of crimes. Officers are expected to respond to a variety of situations that may arise while they are on duty. Rules and guidelines dictate how an officer should behave within the community, and in many contexts restrictions are placed on what the uniformed officer wears. In some countries, rules and procedures dictate that a police officer is obliged to intervene in a criminal incident, even if they are off-duty. Police officers in nearly all countries retain their lawful powers, while off duty.^[3]

In the community[link]

In the majority of Western legal systems, the major role of the police is to maintain order, keeping the peace through surveillance of the public, and the subsequent reporting and apprehension of suspected violators of the law. They also function to discourage crimes through high-visibility policing, and most police forces have an investigative capability. Police have the legal authority to arrest, usually granted by magistrates. Police officers also respond to emergency calls, along with routine community policing.

Police are often used as an emergency service and may provide a public safety function at large gatherings, as well as in emergencies, disasters, search and rescue situations, and Road Traffic Collisions. To provide a prompt response in emergencies, the police often coordinate their operations with fire and emergency medical services. In some countries, individuals serve jointly as police officers as well as firefighters (creating the role of Fire Police) or paramedics. In many countries, there is a common emergency service number that allows the police, firefighters, or medical services to be summoned to an emergency. Some countries, such as the United Kingdom have outlined command procedures, for the use in major emergencies or disorder. The Gold Silver Bronze command structure is a system set up to improve communications between ground based officers and the control room, typically, Bronze Commander would be a senior officer on the ground, coordinating the efforts in the center of the emergency, Silver Commanders would be positioned in an 'Incident Control Room' erected to improve better communications at the scene, and a Gold Commander who would be in the Control Room.

Police are also responsible for reprimanding minor offenders by issuing citations which typically may result in the imposition of fines, particularly for violations of traffic law. Traffic enforcement is often and effectively accomplished by police officers on motorcycles—called motor officers, these officers refer to the motorcycles they ride on duty as simply motors. Police are also trained to assist persons in distress, such as motorists whose car has broken down and people experiencing a medical emergency. Police are typically trained in basic first aid such as CPR.

In addition, some park rangers are commissioned as law enforcement officers and carry out a law-enforcement role within national parks and other back-country wilderness and recreational areas, whereas Military police perform law enforcement functions within the military.

Entry and promotion qualifications[link]

In most countries, candidates for the police force must have completed some formal education.^{[citation needed]} Increasing numbers of people are joining the police force who possess tertiary education^{[citation needed]} and in response to this many police forces have developed a "fast-track" scheme whereby those with university degrees spend two to three years as a Constable before receiving promotion to higher ranks, such as Sergeants or Inspectors. (Officers who work within investigative divisions or plainclothes are not necessarily of a higher rank but merely have different duties.)^{[citation needed]} Police officers are also recruited from those with experience in the military or security services. In the United States state laws may codify state-wide qualification standards regarding age, education, criminal record, and training but in other places requirements are set by local police agencies. Each local Police agency has different requirements.

Officers of the Polizia Municipale from Piacenza, Italy

Promotion is not automatic and usually requires the candidate to pass some kind of examination, interview board or other selection procedure. Although promotion normally includes an increase in salary, it also brings with it an increase in responsibility and for most, an increase in administrative paperwork. There is no stigma attached to this, as experienced line patrol officers are highly regarded.

Dependent upon each agency, but generally after completing two years of service, officers may also apply for specialist positions, such as detective, police dog handler, mounted police officer, motorcycle officer, water police officer, or firearms officer (in countries where police are not routinely armed).

In some countries such as in Singapore, police ranks may also be supplemented through conscription, similar to national service in the military. Qualifications may thus be relaxed or enhanced depending on the target mix of conscripts. In Singapore, for example, conscripts face tougher physical requirements in areas such as eyesight, but are less stringent with minimum academic qualification requirements. Some police officers join as volunteers, who again may do so via differing qualification requirements.

Police pay[link]

This section requires expansion.

In some societies, police officers are paid relatively well compared to other occupations; their pay depends on what rank they are within their police force and how many years they've served.^[4]

Occupational hazards[link]

Line of duty deaths[link]

Memorial to a fallen police officer at the Texas Department of Public Safety Houston Webster Office in Houston^[5]

Line of duty deaths are deaths which occur while an officer is conducting his or her appointed duties. Despite the increased risk of being a victim of a homicide, automobile accidents are the most common cause of officer deaths. Officers are more likely to be involved in traffic accidents because of their large amount of time spent conducting vehicle patrols, or directing traffic, as well as their work outside their vehicles alongside or on the roadway, or in dangerous pursuits. Officers killed by suspects make up a smaller proportion of deaths. In the U.S. in 2005, 156 line of duty deaths were recorded of which 44% were from assaults on officers, 35% vehicle related (only 3% during vehicular pursuits) and the rest from other causes: heart attacks during arrests/foot pursuits, diseases contracted either from suspects' body fluids or, more rarely, from emergency blood transfusions received after being in motor vehicle accidents, shot or stabbed, accidental gun discharges, falls, and drownings.^[6]

Police officers who die in the line of duty, especially those who die from the actions of suspects or in accidents or heart attacks, are often given elaborate funerals, attended by large numbers of fellow officers. Their families may also be entitled to special pensions. Fallen officers are often remembered in public memorials, such as the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in the U.S., the National Police Memorial in the U.K. and the Scottish Police Memorial, at the Scottish Police College.

In the United Kingdom, in the 10 years from April 2000 there were 143 line of duty deaths: 54 in road accidents travelling to or from duty, 46 in road accidents on duty, 23 from natural causes on duty, 15 from criminal acts, and 5 in other accidents.^[7] (In the United Kingdom, police do not normally carry firearms.)

The Singapore Police Force registered just over 100 deaths in a century up to the year 2000. There have been 28 New Zealand police officers killed by criminal act since 1890.^[8] Despite perceived dangers, policing has never been listed above number ten as one of the most dangerous jobs in the U.S. In terms of deaths per capita, driver-sales work such as food delivery is a more dangerous profession than being a police officer^[9].

Work stress[link]

Indicators[link]

The actual presence of stress in police work is well documented and evidenced by certain statistics. Researchers typically use suicide, divorce and alcoholism rates as three key indexes of stress in a group of people.^[10] These factors paint a compelling picture of police officers demonstrating signs of significant stress, for example:

• A study in the United States, by National Surveillance of Police Suicide Study (NSOPS), showed 141 suicides in 2008 and 143 in 2009. This yields a suicide rate of 17/100,000, a figure that holds up under scrutiny and is consistent with CDC/NOMS data.^[11] The overall suicide rate in the United States was 11.3 suicide deaths per 100,000 people.^[12] There is some speculation or controversy that this official rate may understate the actual rate as it is often other police officers that report facts that lead to a cause of death determination, and death benefits, institutional image, and other factors may be incentives to misreport incident facts. It is speculated that some suicides are reported by fellow officers as accidents or as deaths in the line of duty perpetrated by unknown assailants. Also, many jurisdictions simply don't keep suicide statistics. Even though the information is incomplete, the available statistics suggest that police officers are more likely to commit suicide than the general population. However there is still controversy in the interpretation of these statistics. When comparisons are made within age, gender, and racial cohorts, the differences are much less dramatic.^[13][14] Although suicides may be notably more prevalent among police, it is not clear whether police suicides are the result of work stress or the consequence of other variables, such as the influence of a subculture of violence^[15]
• Police officers are much more likely to experience interpersonal relationship problems. Relationship problems are most dramatically demonstrated by the divorce rate among police officers, which is usually reported as being the second highest of all occupations. However in a 2009 study, the divorce rates of law enforcement personnel were compared with the rates for other occupations, where data was analyzed from the 2000 U.S. Census. The results of the analysis indicate that the divorce rate for law enforcement personnel is lower than that of the general population, even after controlling for demographic and other job-related variables.^[16] The propensity to domestic violence is also thought to be higher for police officers than the general population, though the statistics are very fuzzy and controversial. Police officers also seem to have relationship problems at work, typically with superiors or with political oversight, though the evidence is largely anecdotal and controversial.
• Alcoholism is considered another aberrant statistic for police officers. Although the statistics are fuzzy, clinically treated alcohol addiction rates are usually calculated to be about twice as high for police officers than for the general population in the United States. In contrast, statistics documenting alcohol abuse are less precise. Rates for arrest for driving under the influence of alcohol, or DUI or DWI, are somewhat higher for police officers than for other drivers, but the statistics are not widely trusted outside of the insurance industry since it is other police officers that make DUI arrests. Some departments and even some individual officers tend to hold police officers to a higher behavioral and ethical standard while others will recognize a 'blue line' behind which those within the 'brotherhood' are not held to the same standards as the rest of society. Despite the controversies in the interpretation of the statistics, it is generally considered evident that police officers are more susceptible to alcohol abuse than other occupations. The same conclusions are usually made regarding the police abuse of other substances, though the statistics are even less accurate, and even though the higher rates of substance abuse may be due in part to the more ready access to drugs and the more permissive atmosphere 'behind the blue line' rather than to occupational stresses.

Hans Selye, the foremost researcher in stress in the world, said that police work is "the most stressful occupation in America even surpassing the formidable stresses of air traffic control."^[10]

Other researchers, though, claim that police officers are more psychologically healthy than the general population. Police officers are increasingly more educated, more likely to engage in a regular program of exercise and to consume less alcohol and tobacco, and increasingly family-oriented. Healthy behavior patterns typically observed at entry training usually continue throughout the career of an officer. Even though the presence of occupation related stress seems to be well documented, it is highly controversial. Many within the law enforcement industry claim the propagation of incorrect suicide, divorce, and substance abuse statistics comes from people or organizations with political or social agendas, and that the presence of these beliefs within the industry makes it hard for health workers to help police officers in need of treatment to deal with the fear of negative consequences from police work which is necessary to enable police officers to develop a healthy expectancy of success in treatment.^[17]

Sources[link]

Even though the presence of occupational stresses appear to be well documented, though not without controversy, the causes of workplace stress are comparatively unclear or even a matter of conjecture.

Although individual policemen and institutional public relations typically cite the risks of being killed in the line of duty as the predominant source of stress for individual policemen, there is significant controversy regarding the causes of personal workplace stress due to the fact that the actual risk of being killed is so small relative to other occupations.

It is charged that the myth of the high risks of occupational mortality connected with police work is often propagated by the law enforcement community as part of its institutional advancement and a central element in its public relations. Actual homicides of police are comparatively rare, but the reports of such incidents are typically reported in the press along with quotes by police officials or police officer family members stressing the notion that police officers 'put their lives on the line for the public' or 'risk their lives everyday', making it look like individual policemen routinely place themselves in mortal danger for low pay and little recognition, and that the view of police work as 'combat' is the source of police occupational stress indications.

Another explanation often advanced is the idea that police officers will undergo some traumatic experience in their police work that they never recover from, leading to suicide, divorce, etc. However, since the effects of such traumatic stresses is readily recognized, there are usually proactive programs in place to help individual police officers deal with the psychological effects of a traumatic event. Unfortunately, there is some evidence that such programs are actually ineffective, especially group therapies, may re-traumatize the participant, weaken coping mechanisms, and contribute to the development of post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).^[18][19][20]

Observations where police officers and other emergency workers, such as firemen, experience the same traumatic event, it is more likely that the police officer will have difficulty dealing with the long term emotional effects of the traumatic event. On this observation, some of the academic literature suggests that along these lines the causes of occupational stress is more complex for police officers. Stress in police work is often present in other occupations, but not in an ongoing capacity. One line of thinking is that the individual stresses of police work produce a condition of chronic stress. Police officers encounter stressors in call after call which sap their emotional strength. Debilitation from this daily stress accumulates making officers more vulnerable to traumatic incidents and normal pressures of life. The weakening process is often too slow to see; neither a person nor his friends are aware of the damage being done. The effects of chronic stresses is two-fold:

• First, prolonged stress causes people to regress. Their psychological growth reverses, and they become more immature. They rapidly become more childish and primitive, much like a person being sick for several days becoming more irritable and childish in its demands on other people.
• Second, chronic stress numbs people's sensitivity. They can't stand to continually see human misery. They must stop feeling or they won't survive. The mind has this defense mechanism so people can continue working in horrible situations. If they kept their normal sensitivity, they would fall apart. As they become insensitive to their own suffering, they become insensitive to the suffering of others. When treated with indignity, they lose not only a sense of their own dignity but also the dignity of others. The pain of others stops bothering them, and they are no longer bothered when they hurt others.

The daily work of a police officer involves certain paradoxes and conflicts which may be difficult to deal with, the predominant examples are^[10]

• Any interaction with a member of the public, whether socially or officially, such as in a traffic stop, involves a non-trivial risk of verbal abuse or physical harm. Treating a person with common respect or normal social graces requires the officer to be off guard and unprepared for an attack. Being on guard for an attack and treating every interpersonal situation with safety procedures and affirmative commands makes the police officer appear cynical, brutal, and detached, and limits his actual effectiveness with the public. Considering someone a friend or an enemy produces opposite mental states, an unnatural no-win situation engendering chronic stress.
• A police department is both a professional and military organization, and these two aspects oppose each other. As a professional, he is considered to be an expert in his field and is expected to use his expertise for the good of his public. He has much discretion in how he serves the people who call upon him. However, the dangers and complexities of the work require a military structure of the organization and a military leaning in the training. Although some are actually educated, all police officers are well trained. Policies, regulations, and procedures cover every facet of police work. Everything is expected to be done by the book with substantial repercussions, including civil and criminal liability, for varying from the expectations of operating procedures. Often the facts of a situation require a course of action that does not follow procedures. If he follows procedures exactly, he knows he won't fully help the public, and the public will think he is shirking his responsibility. If the officer follows his own judgment, he is taking a risk. The community and department expect officers to use judgment, but when they do, there is a danger they will be disciplined; another unnatural no-win situation engendering chronic stress.
• Police officers tend to become socially isolated. The reasons given for this isolation are varied and mostly anecdotal. One theory is that police work is not balanced. Most occupations involve a combination of good and bad results. In police work, almost everything is bad, and everybody you deal with is perceived either inherently bad or at least foolish. Another is that police officers develop a 'street wisdom' and by fiat possess a degree of authority that tends to make them perceive themselves as being morally superior to the rest of society. Whatever the reason, the public that the police deal with clearly perceive it and tend to reinforce the divide. Classically when a group of people are isolated, they become disoriented and confused. Their behavior changes drastically. Ironically an isolated class are usually the ones who are losing real world wisdom and tend to judge the world incorrectly from a very limited perspective, leading to interpersonal mistakes and more chronic stress.^{[citation needed]}

A more colloquial view looks at specific sources of stress in police work.^[21] The sources of stress most often actually cited are:

• The fear of killing someone in the line of duty.
• Having your partner or somebody else that you feel at least partly responsible for killed in the line of duty.
• Lack of support by the department or superiors.
• The scheduling of work and irregular work demands resulting in a disruption of family time or family events or rituals.
• The daily grind of dealing with the stupidity of the public, or the "asshole factor".

Other more academic studies have produced similar lists, but may include items that the more colloquial surveys do not reveal, such as 'exposure to neglected, battered, or dead children'^[22]

Again, the actual fear of occupational death or physical harm is not high on the list of stress sources.

There have been numerous academic studies on the specific sources of police stress, and most conclude organizational culture and workload as the key issues in officer stress.^[23] Traumatic events are usually concluded to not be of sufficient scope or prevalence to account for prevalence of suicide, divorce, and substance abuse abnormalities.

Personality theories[link]

Some of the more esoteric, least documented or cited, and more longstanding theories for police stress symptoms involves the interaction of the specifics of police work with the personalities of individual police officers. There has been a raging debate on the fringes of psychiatry as to whether there is something about police work that causes psychiatric symptomology and personality disorders or whether there are certain personalities susceptible to disorders that are attracted to police work. Theory holds that there are four general possibilities:

• There is something about police work, the social structure, the work atmosphere, etc., which causes stresses or presents traumas that cause personality or psychiatric disorders resulting in symptoms such as suicide, divorce, violence, substance abuse, etc. (the foundations of this possibility are outlined above)
• There is one or more personality types or people with certain tendencies or proclivities who are susceptible of developing personality or psychiatric disorders, regardless of their occupation, who because of their personality or preferences are attracted to police work, and then display symptoms of stress or disorders.
• There is a combination of the two.
• Or there is a combination and synergistic interaction of the two.

Some studies have tried to use personality traits to determine police applicant desirability,^[24]. These have generally looked at psychology's Big Five personality traits of openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness and neuroticism. These studies have suggested that age, cynicism and institutional culture affect performance.

There are other personality traits that are specifically not desired for police work that are equally well documented. However, there has been relatively little academic work cited regarding the personality traits attracted to police work. The nature of personality traits of people attracted to police work tends to be a matter of conjecture and anecdotal observations. The personalities of people who are actually in police work tends to be different from that which is purported to be desired by police departments. Police officers tend to be isolated and suspicious, view expression of emotions as a weakness, and find it hard to trust and confide in others.^[25] For example, police officers are often viewed by the public to be domineering, narcissistic, authoritarian, physically oppressive, and basically the opposite of the personality traits most often cited as being desirable in a police officer. There are studies that suggest that people who take risks are attracted to police work.^[26] There is a corresponding theory that police officers actually tend to be people seeking security and stability and are attracted to the job for the steady government paycheck and government pension and adverse to the risks of business, sales, or other occupations. There is ample evidence that there is something in police work that alters personality.

The theory that there is an interaction between the personality attracted to the work and the work itself is mostly conjecture. For example, people attracted to police work are thought to crave the respect and authority that they expect with a badge, gun, uniform, and commission, but most of the people that police officers come in contact with do not respect them, and their authority is strongly regulated and limited by law, policies, and procedures, setting up a conflict resulting in chronic stress.

Abuse of power[link]

Police officers have considerable powers and are often supported by authorities who oversee them if accused of wrongdoing.^[27]

Systematic cases[link]

In dictatorial, corrupt, or weak states, police officers may carry out many criminal acts for the ruling regime with impunity. Examples are the Gestapo secret police in Nazi Germany, and the role of the police in the military dictatorship in Argentina in the 1970s.^[28] Institutional racism has been found in modern police forces.^[29]

Individual cases[link]

Individual officers, or sometimes whole units, can be corrupt or carry out various other forms of misconduct; this occasionally happens in many forces, but is particularly problematic where police pay is very low unless supplemented by bribes.^[30] Police sometimes act with unwarranted brutality when they overreact to confrontational situations,^[31] to extract a confession from a person they may or may not genuinely suspect of being guilty,^[32] or in other circumstances. Instances of racism occur, even when the police force as a whole is not found to be racist.^[33]

See also[link]

• The Thin Blue Line (emblem)
• Cops (TV series)
• Fictional police officers
• Field Training Officer
• List of slang terms for police officers
• Military police
• Peace officer
• Police brutality
• Police rank
• Police procedural
• President Grover Cleveland—former Sheriff of Erie County, New York
• President Theodore Roosevelt—Deputy Sheriff in the Dakota Territory, and New York City Police Commissioner

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Police officers

• Thin Blue Line Emblem
• http://www.discoverpolicing.org
• Metropolitan Police history
• http://www.newscotlandyard.police.uk/foi/pdfs/other_information/corporate/operational_uniform_and_equipment.pdf
• http://www.west-midlands.police.uk/publications/freedom-of-information/policy.asp?id=144
• http://www.gmp.police.uk/mainsite/pages/pcsouniform.htm,ts=2
• http://www.policelink.com

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (September 2008)

Gilbert Gottfried
Gottfried at the Writers Guild of America East Solidarity Rally in Washington Square in 2007
Born	(1955-02-28) February 28, 1955 (age 57) Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
Medium	Stand-up, film, television
Nationality	American
Years active	1980–present
Genres	Satire, crude humor, blue comedy, improvisational comedy, black comedy, insult comedy
Subject(s)	Religion, race relations, racism, pop culture, sex
Spouse	Dara Kravitz (2007–present)
Notable works and roles	Saturday Night Live Comedy Central Roasts Host of USA Up All Night Mr. Peabody in Problem Child Iago in Aladdin Digit in Cyberchase Aflac Duck in the Aflac commercials

Gilbert Gottfried (born February 28, 1955) is an American actor, voice actor and stand-up comedian best known for his trademark comedic persona of speaking in a loud, grating tone of voice.^[1] He has played numerous roles in film and television, perhaps most notably voicing the parrot Iago in Disney's Aladdin (1992), and co-starred in the Problem Child movies. He is also known for voicing Digit in the children's cartoon/educational math-based show Cyberchase, the Aflac duck until 2011 and Marley the alligator in Winnie the Pooh.

Early life[link]

Born in Brooklyn, New York, in 1955, Gottfried is the youngest of three children.^[2][3]

Career[link]

Early career (1980–1994)[link]

At age fifteen, Gilbert Gottfried began doing amateur stand-up in New York City and, after a few years, became known^{[by whom?]} as "the comedian's comedian."^[4] In 1980, the popular NBC late-night comedy show Saturday Night Live was being retooled with a new staff and new comedians; the producers noticed Gottfried and hired him as a cast member. During the 1980–1981 season, Gottfried's persona in SNL sketches was very different from his later characterization: he rarely (if ever) spoke in his trademark screeching, obnoxious voice and never squinted. During his 12-episode stint, he was given very little airtime and seldom used in sketches. Gottfried recalls a low point was having to play a corpse in a sketch about a sports organist hired to play inappropriate music at a funeral. Despite this, he had one recurring character (Leo Waxman, husband to Denny Dillon's Pinky Waxman on the recurring talk show sketch, "What's It All About?") and two celebrity impersonations: David A. Stockman and controversial film director Roman Polanski.

Although not a regular, he also appeared in the short-lived 1992 TV series The Amazing Live Sea Monkeys and voiced crazed dentist "Dr. Bender" and his son Wendell on the show The Fairly OddParents and the voice of Jerry the Belly Button Elf on Ren and Stimpy. He is notably known for his voice-overs as ducks or other birds—when asked how he prepared for his role of Iago in Aladdin, he said "I did the whole DeNiro thing. I moved to South America! I lived in the trees!" He was the host of the Saturday edition of USA Up All Night. Rhonda Shear hosted the Friday version.

Voice acting, television and films (1999–2001)[link]

Gottfried at the 1991 Emmy Awards

He also appeared as a semi-regular in the most recent version of Hollywood Squares. He is best remembered for a 1999 episode in which a single round of play took up the entire half-hour. The contestants had each won four stars/squares, leaving Gottfried as the last square available. Because either player could win upon capturing Gottfried's square, they could not win on their competitor's wrong response and had to win it themselves. The contestants alternated agreeing or disagreeing about whether Gottfried was bluffing an answer—and missed six consecutive tries. Five of those times he admonished the contestant with an increasingly incredulous "YOU FOOL!", mimicking Penn Jillette and his partner Teller. The seventh time he and the contestant agreed, and they finally won the square and the game. This segment has been featured on game show blooper programs and it is popular on YouTube.

Gottfried has provided the voice of the duck in the AFLAC commercials and Digit in the math-mystery cartoon Cyberchase on PBS Kids GO!, as well as the magical imp Mr. Mxyzptlk on Superman: The Animated Series. He also played a nasty wisecracking criminal genius named "Nick-Nack" who used toys to commit crimes on two episodes of the TV series Superboy (he also co-wrote an issue of the tie-in Superboy: The Comic Book which featured the origin of his character, Nick-Nack). Gottfried made regular appearances on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.

Recent work (2004–present)[link]

In 2004 Comedy Central featured his stand up material for an animated series called Shorties Watchin' Shorties.^[5] Gottfried was part of an online advertising campaign for Microsoft's Office XP software, showing, in a series of Flash-animated cartoons, that the Clippy office assistant would be removed. In 2006, Gottfried topped the Boston Phoenix's tongue-in-cheek list of the world's 100 Unsexiest Men. In April 2006, Gottfried performed with the University of Pennsylvania's Mask and Wig Club in their annual Intercollegiate Comedy Festival. Also in 2006, he made an appearance on the Let's Make a Deal portion of Gameshow Marathon (as a baby in a large high chair, he says "Hey Ricki, I think I need my diaper changed!"), and in the Dodge Viper in the big deal (where he tells the contestants "What were you thinking?!" because neither one picked it). He also guest-starred in The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy as Santa Claus in the one-hour Christmas Special. He voiced Rick Platypus in an episode of My Gym Partner's a Monkey entitled "That Darn Platypus". Furthermore, Gottfried appeared as Peter's horse in an episode of Family Guy entitled "Boys Do Cry". He also guest-starred in Hannah Montana as Barny Bittmen. In January 2009, Gottfried worked again with David Faustino for an episode of Faustino's show Star-ving.^[6] In 2011, Gottfried appeared in the episode "Lost Traveler" on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit as Leo Gerber, a sarcastic computer professional working for the NYPD's Technical Assistance Response Unit, which producer Warren Leight said could become a recurring character.^[7]

Controversy[link]

9/11 joke[link]

During his monologue at a Friars Club roast of Hugh Hefner three weeks after the September 11 attacks, Gottfried joked that he had intended to catch a plane, but couldn't get a direct flight because "they said they have to stop at the Empire State Building first." This was one of the first public examples of 9/11 humor. Audience members responded with hisses and a cry of "Too soon!". Gottfried then abandoned his prepared remarks and launched into the venerable Aristocrats joke, winning back the audience.^[8] Penn Jillette and Paul Provenza used Gottfried's monologue as a segment in their 2005 film, The Aristocrats.^[9]

Japanese tsunami jokes[link]

In March 2011, Gottfried made jokes on his Twitter account in reference to the earthquake disaster in Japan. He later deleted the tweets and apologized. Aflac, which does 75% of its business in Japan, dismissed Gottfried on March 14, 2011 and announced a casting call for his replacement as the voice of its duck mascot.^[10] He was replaced by Daniel McKeague on April 26, 2011.^[11]

Filmography[link]

• Saturday Night Live: various sketches (1980–1981)
• Beverly Hills Cop II: Sidney Bernstein (1987)
• Hot to Trot: Dentist (1988)
• The Adventures of Ford Fairlane: Johnny Crunch (1990)
• Look Who's Talking Too: Joey (1990)
• Superboy: Nick-Nack (1990)
• Problem Child: Mr. Peabody (1990)
• Problem Child 2: Mr. Peabody (1991)
• Night Court (TV series): as Oscar Brown (1991)
• Aladdin: Iago the Parrot (voice) (1992)
• Highway to Hell: Hitler (1992)
• Bonkers: Two-Bits (1993–1995)
• Problem Child (TV series): Mr. Peabody (1993)
• The Return of Jafar: Iago the Parrot (voice) (1994)
• Thumbelina: Berkeley Beetle (voice) (1994)
• Saved by the Bell: Wedding in Las Vegas: Burt Banner (1994)
• Double Dragon (1994)
• Beavis and Butthead: Gus Baker (1994)
• "The Ren and Stimpy Show" Jerry the Bellybutton Elf/ Porkchop Monster (voice) (1994)
• Duckman: (recurring role) Art DeSalvo (1994–1997)
• Married... With Children: Ship Happens: Part 2 (1995)
• Adventures in Wonderland (TV series) : Mike McNasty (1995)
• Problem Child 3: Junior in Love: Dr. Peabody (1995)
• The Cosby Show patient (1987)
• Bump in the Night: Stink Bug (1995)
• Twisted Tales of Felix the Cat: Additional Characters (1995–1996)
• Aladdin (TV series): Iago the Parrot (1994–1995)
• Aladdin and the King of Thieves: Iago the Parrot (1996)
• Are You Afraid of the Dark?: Roy (1996)
• In the House: Mr. Comstock (1996)
• Superman: The Animated Series: Mr Mxyzptlk (1996–2000)
• Adventures from the Book of Virtues (1996)
• Big Bag (Troubles the Cat segment) (1996)
• Def Jam's How to Be a Player (1997)
• Bear in the Big Blue House: Large Possum (voice) (1997)
• Noddy: Jack Frost (1998)
• Hercules: Cilon (1998)
• Dr. Dolittle: Compulsive Dog (voice) (1998)
• Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist (TV series): As himself in episodes 503 and 506 (1999)
• Clerks: The Animated Series: the voice of Jerry Seinfeld and Patrick Swayze (2000)
• Mad TV: special appearance, one episode (1997)
• Timon & Pumbaa (TV series): The Woodpecker
• Fairly Odd Parents: Dr. Bender/Wendel (2001–2005)
• Disney's House of Mouse and Mickey's House of Villains: Iago the Parrot
• Kingdom Hearts: Iago the Parrot (2002)
• Kingdom Hearts II: Iago the Parrot (2006)
• CSI: Crime Scene Investigation – Season 3, Episode: Last Laugh:Comic (2003)
• Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events: Duck (2004)
• Celebrity Deathmatch :As himself in episode Gottfried in the Arena
• Cyberchase: Digit and Widget (2002–present)
• The Aristocrats (2005)
• Back by Midnight (2002): Security Guard
• Becker: A plastic surgeon
• Meet Wally Sparks: Harry Karp
• The Tonight Show with Jay Leno: various sketches
• Son of the Beach: Noccus Johnstein in both "Chip's A Goy" and Hamm Stroker's Suck My Blood:(2002)
• VH1's Celebrity Paranormal Project and I Love Toys
• Billy and Mandy Save Christmas: Santa Claus (voice)
• Farce of the Penguins: "I'm Freezing My Nuts Off" penguin (voice) (2007)
• Family Guy: Peter's horse (voice)
• My Gym Partner's a Monkey: Rick Platypus (voice)
• El Tigre:The Adventures of Manny Rivera: El Cerdo (voice)
• Hannah Montana Season 2 Episode "(We're So Sorry) Uncle Earl": Barney Bitman (2008)
• VH1's I Love the New Millennium 4 Episodes (2008)
• The Emperor's New School 2.season 11 Episodes (12.03.2007)
• The Comedy Central Roast: Bob Saget (2008)
• The Replacements: Himself (2008)
• Back at the Barnyard: Barn Buddy (2008)
• Gilbert Gottfried: Dirty Jokes (1 hour Showtime Special) (2008) – live stand-up performance in Manhattan, NY. Gottfried promises 'the dirtiest joke ever told'
• The Lindabury Story (2009)
• The View – Horny the Dwarf (Joy's Month in ReView)
• The Weird Al Show: himself
• Pyramid: Himself (Celebrity Guest)
• Hollywood Squares: Himself (Regular)
• The Comedy Central Roast: Joan Rivers (2009)
• Seth MacFarlane's Cavalcade of Cartoon Comedy Himself (2009)
• Back at the Barnyard: Security System (2009)
• Jack and the Beanstalk (2010 Film): Grayson (2010)
• 'Til Death Guest starred as Tommy (2010)
• Stripperland (2010)
• The Comedy Central Roast: David Hasselhoff (2010)
• Robotomy: Tickle Me Psycho (2010)
• The Comedy Central Roast: Donald Trump (2011)
• Law & Order: SVU (2011)
• Winnie the Pooh: Marley the friendly alligator (2011)

Commercials[link]

• Aflac: Voice of the Aflac Duck (2000–2011)
• ShoeDini (voiceover): The ShoeDini is, as he describes it in the commercial, "a shoe horn on a stick."
• Public Service Announcement: He is the voice of Seymour Smoke, the talking smoke detector.
• Voiced the talking shadow puppet mascot in a series of Subway commercials in 2000.

References[link]

External links[link]

• Gilbert Gottfried at the Internet Movie Database
• The Official Site of Gilbert Gottfried

Alan Thicke
Alan Thicke attending the "Night of 100 Stars" for the 82nd Academy Awards viewing party at the Beverly Hills Hotel, Beverly Hills, CA on March 7, 2010
Born	Alan Willis Jeffery (1947-03-01) March 1, 1947 (age 65) Kirkland Lake, Ontario, Canada
Occupation	Actor, comedian, songwriter, composer, game show host, talk-show emcee
Years active	1969–present
Spouse	Gloria Loring (1970–1983) Gina Tolleson (1994–1999) Tanya Callau (2005–present)

Alan Thicke (born Alan Willis Jeffrey; March 1, 1947) is a Canadian actor, comedian, songwriter, and game and talk show host. He is best known for his role as Jason Seaver, the patriarch on the ABC television series Growing Pains.

Early life[link]

Thicke was born in Kirkland Lake, Ontario, Canada, the son of Joan, a nurse, and William Jeffery, a stockbroker.^[1] His mother later married Brian Thicke, a physician. He graduated from Elliot Lake Secondary School in 1965, and was elected the homecoming king.^[2] He went on to attend the University of Western Ontario, where he joined the Delta Upsilon fraternity.

Career[link]

Game shows[link]

Thicke hosted a Canadian game show on CFCF-TV in Montreal called First Impressions in the late 1970s and the prime time celebrity game show Animal Crack-Ups in the late 1980s. In 1997, he hosted a television version of the board game Pictionary.^[1] In the early 2000s, he hosted the All New 3's a Crowd on the Game Show Network.^[1]

Talk shows[link]

Norman Lear hired Thicke to produce and head the writing staff of Fernwood 2-Night, a tongue-in-cheek talk show based on characters from Lear's earlier show, Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman.

Thicke was also the host of his own popular talk show in Canada during the early 1980s, called The Alan Thicke Show. The show at one point spawned a prime time spin-off titled Prime Cuts, which consisted of edited highlights from the talk show.

Based on the success of his talk show, Thicke was signed to do an American late night talk show Thicke of the Night.

Theme song composer[link]

Thicke had a successful career as a TV theme song composer. He often collaborated with his wife Gloria Loring on these projects, which included the themes to the popular sitcoms Diff'rent Strokes and The Facts of Life. He also wrote a number of TV game show themes, including The Wizard of Odds (for which he also sang the vocal introduction), The Joker's Wild, Celebrity Sweepstakes, The Diamond Head Game, Blank Check, Stumpers!, Whew!,^[3] and the original theme to Wheel of Fortune. Thicke has also been a popular songwriter. As an example, he co-wrote "Sara," a solo hit for Bill Champlin and included on the latter's Runaway album (1981).

Television and film appearances[link]

Apart from Growing Pains, Thicke also appeared on the American television series Hope & Gloria, which lasted 35 episodes. He played a lead role in the Not Quite Human trilogy of made for TV movies. In 2004, Thicke hosted the Miss Universe Canada pageant.^[2] In April 2006, he hosted Celebrity Cooking Showdown on NBC, in which celebrities were teamed with famous chefs in a cooking competition.^[2]

In August 2006 and 2007, Thicke made a few appearances as talk show host Rich Ginger on The Bold and the Beautiful.^[2] Thicke also had a cameo appearance in the 2007 movie Alpha Dog as the father of the lead character's girlfriend. Later that year he was offered the role of Reed Richards in a Fantastic Four movie that never saw the light of day.

In 2008, Thicke appeared in a major supporting role as Jim Jarlewski in the television series adaptation of Douglas Coupland's jPod.^[2]

That year, he had a cameo appearance in the How I Met Your Mother episode "Sandcastles in the Sand" as the dad in Robin Scherbatsky's second "Robin Sparkles" music video.^[4] He guest starred as himself in the episode "The Rough Patch". He appeared on a website made specifically for the show, canadiansexacts.org, featured in the episode "Old King Clancy".

In February 2009, Thicke made a guest appearance on adult swim's Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job. In the same month, he made a guest appearance on the web series Star-ving.^[5]

Thicke had a role in the 2009 film The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard. On July 10, 2009, Thicke appeared on the 1000th episode of Attack Of The Show, and sang a song with Kevin Pereira and Olivia Munn, at the end kissing Munn.

He appeared in the season 6 finale of Just Shoot Me, "The Boys in the Band". He made a guest appearance on a few episodes of Canada's Worst Handyman 5. In 2010 Thicke appeared on the television program, Tosh.0. In October 2010, he was on the celebrity version of Don't Forget the Lyrics, where he played for the charities ProCon.org and the Alan Thicke Center for diabetes research.^[6]

Personal life[link]

Thicke has been married three times. His first marriage to Days of our Lives actress Gloria Loring, from 1970 to 1983, and they had two sons, Brennan and Robin.^[1] His second marriage was to the Miss World 1990 pageant winner, Gina Tolleson, from 1994 to 1999, and produced a third son, Carter William.^[1] He has been married to Tanya Callau since 2005.^[2] He is an avid ice hockey and softball fan.

His son Robin is a platinum album-selling musician, and his son Brennan was a voice actor for cartoons when he was younger.

Filmography[link]

Alan Thicke at a Canadian Film Centre & Variety-hosted reception for the Telefilm Canada Features Comedy Lab, in March 2012

Films

TV Movies

TV Series