Chapter 2: Police Psychology Flashcards
What are the two stages involved in developing a valid police selection procedure?
1) Job analysis
2) Construction and Validation
What is the job analysis stage and what are some issues with it
- define KSAs that make a good police officer
- conducted by: psychologist
- determined through surveys, interviews, observation, etc.
Issues:
- Stability over time - KSAs may change based on stage in career
- different KSAs for different roles
- people may disagree on which are most important
What is the construction and validation stage and what are some issues with it?
- ensure predictive validity (will it be able to accurately predict performance?)
- how to test KSAs and develop instruments
Issues:
how is performace measured? how well can in correlate?
What is the goal of police selection procedures?
to screen-out undesirable candidates and select-in desirable ones
Predictive validity
extent that scores on a test predict the outcome of another measure
Selection Instruments
Selection Inverviews:
what is the goal?
how is it done?
what are some issues?
- interview to determine KSAs
- semi-structured list of standard questions (pre-determined)
- can sometimes predict job performance
Issues:
- predictive validity isn’t 100% (ex. didn’t know anything about cows but did really well at the job)
selection instruments
Cognitive Abilities Test
what is the goal? how is it done? how strong is the predictive validity?
goal: measures verbal, mathematical, memory, reasoning, judgment, logic, computation, etc.
- RCMP Aptitude Test (RPAT)
moderate predictive validity
selection instruments - personality tests
Minesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI-2)
what is the goal? how is it done? how strong is the predictive validity?
- most popular
- not originally for law use
- goal: to identify psychopathology (depression, schizophrenia, paranoia, etc.)
- moderate predictive validity
selection instruments - personality tests
Inwald Personality Inventory (IPI)
what is the goal? how strong is the predictive validity?
- designed for police use
- goal: measure personality and behaviour (ex. stress reactions, alcohol/drug use, interpersonal difficulties, etc.)
- better predictive validity than MMPI-2
Selection instruments - assessment centers
Physical tests
what is the goal? how are they done? what are some problems and criticisms?
goal: observe behaviour of police officers
method: situational tests - simulations/scenarios
ex. PARE test
problems : NO predictive validity
usually built for men
criticisms: more important skills required?
most police work is sedentary
misses other important physical elements (ex. handcuffing someone)
Why is police discretion uses?
What are some issues with it?
- can’t predict every scenario
- trusted to use good judgment
- sometimes officers have to let things slide because they can’t always be using full enforcement
issues:
- sometimes it is used inappropriately (ex. discrimination)
What are the rules for the use of police discretion with iindividuals with mental illnesses?
- allowed to intervene and should apprehend the individual if they are a threat to themselves or others
options:
- take them to a psychiatric unit/hospital (sometimes hospitals won’t take them because of danger but this can put the idividual at risk of becoming criminalized)
- arrest
- resolve informally
use-of-force
What are the 5 levels of resistance?
1) COOPERATIVE (no resistance, compliance)
2) NON-COOPERATIVE (no physical resistance, verbal defiance)
3) RESISTANT (pulling/running away)
4) COMBATIVE (threats, punching, kicking, applying force)
5) Showing potential to cause harm or death to themselves or others (maybe has a weapon)
Canada’s use of force model
chart guideline for needed level of force
- a way to control police disctretion (have some rules)
what is the new taser policy and why was it made?
can only use a taser when someone is actively resisting
Robert Dziekański case
- didn’t speak english, travelling to Vancouver
- lost in the airport, couldn’t find his mom
- gets frustrated
- police were contacted due to eratic behaviour
- chose to use a taser and used it too much which killed Robert
use of force
What are the 5 response levels?
1) OFFICER PRESENCE (maybe a knock on the door is all that’s needed)
2) DIALOGUE (talking to offender)
3) EMPTY HANDS (uses some physical force like asking the person to sit on their hands)
4) COMPLIANCE TOOLS (ex. pepper spray)
5) LETHAL FORCE (ex. used if someone has a weapon and they need to shoot)
what are some statistics regarding use-of-force interactions?
- rarely used (.07% to 1.5% of interactions)
- mainly male (94%)
- most people are impaired (88%)
How is use-of-force justified and what is an issue with it?
- must be necessary and reasonable
- determined by opinion rather than rule (police discretion)
Controlling Police Discretion
RCMP Incident Management
visual aid to help officers explain their intervention decisions
How did Sergeant Beaudry use police discretion inappropriately in Beaudry v. The Queen (2007)?
- purposefully didn’t breathalyze another officer who was intoxicated while on the job
- obstruction of justice
What are some steps in the RCMP Selection Process?
(8 steps)
1) meet job requirements (permanent resident, 19+, willing to carry a firearm, willing to relocate, no criminal record)
2) vision and hearing assessments
3) online application
4) entrance exams (personality and aptitude test)
5) forms
6) polygraph
7) full physical and psychological health assessment
8) 26 week cadet training
90% of people who apply don’t get the job
sources of police stress
Intra-Organizational stressors and Inter-Organizational stressors
IntRA - ex. excessive paperwork
IntER - ex. jurisdictional isolationism (lack of cooperation, sometimes unhealthy competition)
sources of police stress
Occupational stressors
ex. human suffering
- people often assume this would be the hardest stressors BUT research shows that workplace conflicts (intra and inter-organizational stressors) are actually the hardest
sources of police stress
Criminal justice system stressors
ex. unfavourable court desisions
- frustration at court systems
- some officers think decisions are unfairly making them work more
sources of police stress
Public stressors
ex. the media (often contains false information)
How does stress impact officers?
- poor physical health
- psychological and personal (depression, ptsd, substance abuse, marital problems, suicide, etc.)
- job performance
What are some solutions for police stress?
1) Prevention strategies - resiliency training
2) Management strategies - psychological debriefing
Also, culture around policing suggests that work comes before family (which needs to be adressed)
What are some of the highest ranking stressors?
1) feeling that rules aren’t equal (favouritism)
2) fatigue
3) feeling like you always have to prove yourself
4) poor/inconsistant leadership
5) dealing with court systems
6) bureaucratic red tape
7) work-life balance
8) shift work
9) poor physical health due to a lack of time
10) percieved pressure to give up and volunteer free time
