Pre-career exposure to violence as a predictor of emotional distress among police recruits

The occupational risks to police mental health are widely known; however, less is known about how early life experiences and pre-academy stressors influence the emotional wellness of recruits in an academy setting. The present study investigated the links between pre-career exposure to violence and emotional wellness among a sample of 1,072 police recruits. Results of path analyses revealed that direct exposure to physical violence prior to age 18 was a significant factor for recruit emotional distress, whereas indirect exposure to violence did not significantly predict emotional distress. Findings carry implications for considering a lifespan approach to understanding police stress.

Lived Experiences on Varied Dimensions of Police Recruits’ Training and Practice Basis for Quality Police Performance

Police malpractice, abuse of power, and police misfits are issues and problems associated with police recruits. There were reports about inappropriate acts committed by newly hired police officers during their actual field practice. This qualitative phenomenological studydetermined the dimensions of training that hamper the development of knowledge and skills of the police trainees and police officers.Seventeen (17) purposely selected participants comprised the sample for this study. They were chosen through the following inclusion criteria: police supervisors, trainers, police recruits, staff from the National Police Training Institute (NPTI) and have two or more years ofexperience. Thirteen recurring themes emerged from the verbatim interviews. The Philippine National Police (PNP), National Police Training Institute (NPTI), and the National Police Commission (NAPOLCOM) are the three public safety institutions in the Philippinesthat are expected to promote the quality performance of police recruits in both training and practice. On the whole, the results of this study can serve as the basis for creating innovative policies about police recruits’ selection, curriculum development, stress management,creation of core competency framework, performance evaluation system, and training and practice needs assessment.

Effect of Psycho-Yogic Training Intervention on Selected Psychological Variables of Female Police Recruits

The purpose of this study was to find the effects of an eight-week psycho-yogic training intervention on theselected psychological parameters of female police recruits. Materials and methods. Initially, the study involved 200 FPR. Out of the 200 participants, 100 participants werescreened using the lie score of the revised Eysenck Personality Questionnaire. Participants were then further divided intotwo groups (i.e., experimental and control) using the stratified random sampling method based on the lie score. Thepsychological variables selected for the study were aggression (physical aggression, verbal aggression, hostility, andanger), emotional intelligence (self-awareness, managing emotions, self-motivation, empathy, and social skill), anxiety, perceived stress, satisfaction with life, and self-esteem. Tests were conducted pre-training and post-training after eightweeks. Results. The Friedman’s two-way analysis of variance revealed significant difference in verbal aggression (p = 0.016), hostility (p = 0.017), managing emotions (p = 0.004), self-motivation (p = 0.004), empathy (p = 0.017), social skill (p= 0.015), anxiety (p = <0.001), perceived stress (p = <0.001), satisfaction with life (p = 0.022), and self-esteem (p = <0.001). Further post-hoc analysis test – Kruskal Wallis revealed that the experimental group improved significantly from pre- to post-test in managing emotions (p = 0.005, d = 0.61, Δ% = 9), self-motivation (p = 0.027, d = 0.57, Δ% = 8.8), social skill (p = 0.002, d= 0.59, Δ% = 10.2), satisfaction with life (p = 0.036, d = 0.5, Δ% = 11.7), and self-esteem (p = <0.001, d = 0.94, Δ% = 17.6). In addition, the experimental group had reduced anxiety (p = <0.001, d = 1.27, Δ% = 59.3) and perceived stress (p = <0.001, d = 1.32, Δ% = 41.7) from pre- to post-testing. On the other hand, the control group showed significant deterioration in physical aggression (p = 0.018, d = 0.58, Δ% = 19.9), verbal aggression (p = 0.017, d = 0.57, Δ% = 17), andhostility (p = 0.013, d = 0.54, Δ% = 17.8). Conclusion. The study findings suggest psycho-yogic training of eight weeks duration to be an effective strategyor method to improve the psychological parameters of female police recruits.

A Comparison of Women’s Motivations to Enter the Police Profession in the Caribbean

Absent from the criminological literature on policing in the Caribbean are studies on female’s motivations to become police officers, studies using female police recruits and studies using a comparative approach. As a result of this gap, data were gathered from female police recruits in Jamaica ( N = 37) and Trinidad and Tobago ( N = 60) in July 2017 via a standardised, self-administered questionnaire in order to determine their motivations for entry into policing. The main motivation for female’s entry into policing in both jurisdictions was job security. Revenge and the desire for power and authority were the least cited motivations for entry into the police profession in both jurisdictions. The importance of females as police officers, study limitations and directions for future research are also discussed.

German police recruits’ perception of skill transfer from training to the field

In order optimally to prepare police officers for the demands in the field, police training has to be designed representatively. However, for the German context, there is a scarcity of research investigating to what extent training meets the demands of the field. To fill this gap, the current study examined if police training in Germany meets the field demands of police officers based on the perspective of police recruits. Thirteen recruits from a German police force were interviewed in a semi-structured way to identify possible matches and discrepancies between training and the field. The qualitative were was analysed using content analysis. The results revealed that recruits valued police training very positively because they were able to apply learned skills and tactics in the field. However, results also indicated that: (a) key informational variables present in the field were missing in training, namely chaotic, highly dynamic situations; and (b) police officers need to be adaptable and flexible in the field to cope with the demands. Finally, the results suggested that police training focuses narrowly on dealing with extreme threats, which differs from the experiences recruits had in the field and may have drawbacks because continuously perceiving social situations as threatening and dangerous is a risk factor for aggressive behaviour. Taken together, the current study provides further insights into the wants and needs of recruits in police training.

Proactive Socialisation: a Longitudinal Investigation of Newcomer Adjustment Inside Both an Institutionalised and Individualised Workplace

<p>This thesis adopted a unique approach to the exploration of proactive socialisation and the processes by which a newcomer moves from organisational outsider to insider. Although socialisation involves actions by the individual, the work group, and the organisation, this study is one of the first to investigate how these actions work in tandem to support the adjustment of organisational newcomers. Research was conducted with a group of 526 participants, drawn from a pool of New Zealand Police (NZ Police) recruits and graduate employees. A quantitative method for data gathering was adopted, with questionnaires administered over a 15-month period for police recruits and 6-month period for graduate newcomers. Results indicated that prior work quality and quantity, job interest, proactive personality, team support, and leader-member exchange each had an important role to play in the prediction of newcomer role breadth self-efficacy. In turn, newcomers who felt confident in their ability to carry out a broader and more proactive role also enjoyed a higher level of task mastery and group fit. The successful achievement of these proximal outcomes led to other, more distal outcomes, namely performance and organisational commitment. Each of these outcomes was achieved, regardless of the socialising tactics employed by the hiring organisation. An important feature of this thesis was the design and delivery of a training intervention that was aimed at coaching newcomers in a range of proactive behaviours (i.e., information-seeking, feedback-seeking, positive framing, relationship building, networking, listening, and observation/modeling). Results found that the longitudinal pattern of proaction differed for newcomers in response to the socialising tactics adopted by the organisation. Results also indicated that the impact of training on future proaction was most potent for individuals who already had an elevated level of role breadth self-efficacy, thereby pointing to the importance of building an employee' perception of their own capability. Training was also most effective when key messages were repeated over multiple sessions, and integrated into the solving of realworld tasks. These results challenge previous studies that have assumed proactivity to be a stable construct over time. Beyond contributing to the literature on newcomer socialisation, this thesis goes some way to clarifying why proactive people actually succeed. It would seem that proactive people expect to be successful, thereby making a training intervention more useful. This thesis also challenges prior research that assumes certain adjustment outcomes are dependent on the socialising tactics adopted by the hiring organisation. Thus, rather than passively adapt to their environment, this research shows how a newcomer can actively shape their own socialising experience. A number of methodological weaknesses found in previous studies have been addressed in this thesis. It also presents a number of practical implications to support the pre-entry, initial entry, and long-term adjustment of seasoned newcomers, versus graduate Generation Y employees. Multiple options for future research are also considered.</p>

Proactive Socialisation: a Longitudinal Investigation of Newcomer Adjustment Inside Both an Institutionalised and Individualised Workplace

<p>This thesis adopted a unique approach to the exploration of proactive socialisation and the processes by which a newcomer moves from organisational outsider to insider. Although socialisation involves actions by the individual, the work group, and the organisation, this study is one of the first to investigate how these actions work in tandem to support the adjustment of organisational newcomers. Research was conducted with a group of 526 participants, drawn from a pool of New Zealand Police (NZ Police) recruits and graduate employees. A quantitative method for data gathering was adopted, with questionnaires administered over a 15-month period for police recruits and 6-month period for graduate newcomers. Results indicated that prior work quality and quantity, job interest, proactive personality, team support, and leader-member exchange each had an important role to play in the prediction of newcomer role breadth self-efficacy. In turn, newcomers who felt confident in their ability to carry out a broader and more proactive role also enjoyed a higher level of task mastery and group fit. The successful achievement of these proximal outcomes led to other, more distal outcomes, namely performance and organisational commitment. Each of these outcomes was achieved, regardless of the socialising tactics employed by the hiring organisation. An important feature of this thesis was the design and delivery of a training intervention that was aimed at coaching newcomers in a range of proactive behaviours (i.e., information-seeking, feedback-seeking, positive framing, relationship building, networking, listening, and observation/modeling). Results found that the longitudinal pattern of proaction differed for newcomers in response to the socialising tactics adopted by the organisation. Results also indicated that the impact of training on future proaction was most potent for individuals who already had an elevated level of role breadth self-efficacy, thereby pointing to the importance of building an employee' perception of their own capability. Training was also most effective when key messages were repeated over multiple sessions, and integrated into the solving of realworld tasks. These results challenge previous studies that have assumed proactivity to be a stable construct over time. Beyond contributing to the literature on newcomer socialisation, this thesis goes some way to clarifying why proactive people actually succeed. It would seem that proactive people expect to be successful, thereby making a training intervention more useful. This thesis also challenges prior research that assumes certain adjustment outcomes are dependent on the socialising tactics adopted by the hiring organisation. Thus, rather than passively adapt to their environment, this research shows how a newcomer can actively shape their own socialising experience. A number of methodological weaknesses found in previous studies have been addressed in this thesis. It also presents a number of practical implications to support the pre-entry, initial entry, and long-term adjustment of seasoned newcomers, versus graduate Generation Y employees. Multiple options for future research are also considered.</p>

The impact of COVID-19 on police training academies

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to explore the impacts coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) had on US police academies’ production of police recruits.Design/methodology/approachThe study used a national online survey of police academy directors in the USA, followed by purposive, semi-structured interviews of select academy directors. A combination of quantitative and qualitative data is combined in a mixed methods approach.FindingsThe findings suggest that academies experienced a range of impacts related to COVID-19. These impacts lead to more questions concerning how academies and state-level governing boards responded not only to pandemic-related challenges, but also to their willingness to accept more online and alternative curriculum delivery strategies.Originality/valuePolice academies are a required step in the production of new police recruits in the USA, but researchers have paid little attention to how academies operate. While exploratory, this study provides some insights into how this aspect of policing weathered the COVID-19 pandemic, and offers suggestions for future research, as well as policy implications.

Stress-induced change in salience network coupling prospectively predicts trauma-related symptoms.

Substantial individual differences exist in how acute stress affects large-scale neurocognitive networks, including Salience (SN), Default Mode (DMN) and Central Executive Networks (CEN). These network-level changes upon acute stress may predict vulnerability to long-term stress effects, which can only be tested in prospective longitudinal studies. Using a longitudinal design, we investigated whether the magnitude of acute-stress induced functional connectivity changes (delta-FC) predicts the development of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms in a relatively resilient group of young police recruits that are known to be at high risk for trauma-exposure. Using resting-state fMRI, we measured acute-stress induced delta-FC in 190 police recruits before (baseline) and after trauma exposure during repeated emergency aid services (16-month follow-up). Delta-FC was then linked to the changes in perceived stress levels (PSS) and post-traumatic stress symptoms (PCL and CAPS). Weakened connectivity between the SN and DMN core regions upon acute stress induction at baseline predicted longitudinal increases in perceived stress level but not of post-traumatic stress symptoms, whereas increased coupling between the overall SN and anterior cerebellum was observed in participants with higher clinician-rated PTSD symptoms, particularly intrusion levels. All effects remained significant when controlling for trauma exposure-levels and cortisol stress-reactivity. Except these neural effects, neither hormonal nor subjective measures were relevant. The reconfiguration of large-scale neural networks upon acute stress induction is relevant for assessing and detecting risk and resilience factors for PTSD. This study highlights the SN connectivity-changes as a potential marker for trauma-related symptom-development, which is sensitive even in a relatively resilient sample.