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The aim of the study was to perform a dimensional assessment of subjective stress in the Municipal Police of the City of Rome. We assessed two random samples of 590 traffic police and 590 clerical police officers of both sexes for subjective stress through the administration of the ‘Rapid Stress-Assessment Scale’ (RSA), a self-rated tool; subjects completed the questionnaire during a non-working day. Subsequently, from each sample we randomly included two subsamples of 115 subjects each, to whom we administered the RSA at the beginning and at the end of their shift. Significant differences between traffic and clerical police officers were found in the RSA total score, which was higher among traffic agents. Traffic police officers were found significantly more often in the ‘high stress class’. Gender differences analysis showed higher scores among women. The analysis of the subsample of 230 persons showed a significantly greater degree of the RSA ‘depression’ cluster at the end of the shift only in traffic police officers. The assessment of over-the-counter drug use (NSAID, analgesics, etc.) showed that, among police officers habitually using such drugs, only the traffic police subgroup scored higher on the RSA. Our results could be taken to mean that the stress response of Municipal Police officers who work outdoors is more maladaptive than that of officers working in the office; this could be compatible with the existence of different occupational stressors between the two groups. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]