Optimizing Police Officer Selection

The work is already done it just needs to be rearranged. I took this class in the past and don’t want to use the same words.

Please review and restructure/ reword my answers listed below based on the question and the scenario listed below.

• Should the department attempt to select individuals who will be good officers, or should the department simply try to weed out potentially bad officers?
• How should this selection process be conducted, and what psychological testing instruments, if any, should be included?

Now, let’s look at a procedure that may be necessary following employment—an FFDE:

• Explain how informed consent and the limits of confidentiality should be handled by the forensic examiner.
• Explain how an FFDE is conducted. Include discussion of psychological tests that might be administered in an FFDE.
• Present the possible outcomes of an FFDE. In other words, what might the examiner recommend to the police department?

All responses should follow APA rules for attributing sources.(Optimizing Police Officer Selection)

Selecting the right candidate for a job has always been a hard task for an employer. There are a lot of factors that come into play so as to not discriminate against a potential candidate. However, while the goal is to not discriminate, there are steps an employer should take to ensure they are hiring the best person for the job.

Of all the occupations available, selecting a police officer is very delicate in terms of making the right choice. Due to officers being entrusted with protecting and serving the community, it is critical that police departments go through a rigorous but fair selection process. The selection process should include thorough background checks, credit checks, interviews with former employers, evaluation of education requirements, physical fitness test, report writing skills and psychological assessments. A few examples of psychological assessments are multiple choice testing, surveys, polygraph testing and interviews with a psychologist.

In some situations, police departments have to decide whether or not to focus on hiring new officers or firing bad officers. When it comes to making the final decision on which to focus on, consideration should be taken to focus on both aspects of firing and hiring. If the focus is on getting rid of bad officers, then the department risks the chance of not having enough qualified officers to patrol the streets. If the focus is solely on hiring new offices, then there is the chance the department will neglect dealing with current officer issues.

In regard to dealing with issues of current officers, supervisors have the authority to request a fitness for duty examination (FFDE). According to Bartol & Bartol (2018), an FFDE can be conducted when an officer has undergone a traumatic event or is exhibiting behaviors that are inconsistent with departmental policies. (p. 36) Prior to the FFDE being administered, Bartol & Bartol (2018) states the officer must understand the informed consent of going through the process, and that the examiner is not required to explain to the officer the results of the test. (p. 36) Additionally, it is important to know the requesting department is only entitled to the information that is associated with “the presence or absence of job-related personality traits, characteristics, disorders, propensities, or conditions that would interfere with the performance of essential job functions.” (Bartol & Bartol, 2018, p. 36) Releasing any additional information outside of that scope may infringe upon the rights of the officer undergoing the evaluation.

The International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) have come up with an evaluation process for the psychologist giving the FFDE exam. Utilizing information the psychologist has been provided on the officer’s professional background, the IACP (2013) suggests psychologist use a variety of methods to determine duty fitness. Those methods include a review of background information, personality, cognitive, specialized or psychopathology testing, mental status reviews and clinical interviews, and interviews with third parties, or coordination with specialist if needed. (p. 5)

Once the FFDE is complete, the outcome is either the officer is found fit to continue duty or is deemed unfit for duty. All of the information collected must be related to why the officer was recommended for the FFDE. If the officer is found fit, chances are they will be returned to normal duty. However, if the officer is found to be unfit, the IACP (2013) states the psychological report must thoroughly outline what conditions is causing the officer to be considered unfit and recommendations for the future of the officer within the police department. (p. 6)

References(Optimizing Police Officer Selection)

Bartol, A. & Bartol, C. (2018). Introduction to forensic psychology: Research and application (5th ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications. Retrieved from https://digitalbookshelf.argosy.edu/#/books/9781506387222/cfi/6/10!/4/2/6/8/10@0:93.4

International Association of Chiefs of Police. (2013). Psychological Fitness-for-Duty Evaluation Guidelines. Retrieved from https://www.theiacp.org/sites/default/files/all/p-r/Psych-FitnessforDutyEvaluation.pdf

Selecting the right candidate for a job has always been a hard task for an employer. There are a lot of factors that come into play so as to not discriminate against a potential candidate. However, while the goal is to not discriminate, there are steps an employer should take to ensure they are hiring the best person for the job.

Of all the occupations available, selecting a police officer is very delicate in terms of making the right choice. Due to officers being entrusted with protecting and serving the community, it is critical that police departments go through a rigorous but fair selection process. The selection process should include thorough background checks, credit checks, interviews with former employers, evaluation of education requirements, physical fitness test, report writing skills and psychological assessments. A few examples of psychological assessments are multiple choice testing, surveys, polygraph testing and interviews with a psychologist.

In some situations, police departments have to decide whether or not to focus on hiring new officers or firing bad officers. When it comes to making the final decision on which to focus on, consideration should be taken to focus on both aspects of firing and hiring. If the focus is on getting rid of bad officers, then the department risks the chance of not having enough qualified officers to patrol the streets. If the focus is solely on hiring new offices, then there is the chance the department will neglect dealing with current officer issues.

In regard to dealing with issues of current officers, supervisors have the authority to request a fitness for duty examination (FFDE). According to Bartol & Bartol (2018), an FFDE can be conducted when an officer has undergone a traumatic event or is exhibiting behaviors that are inconsistent with departmental policies. (p. 36) Prior to the FFDE being administered, Bartol & Bartol (2018) states the officer must understand the informed consent of going through the process, and that the examiner is not required to explain to the officer the results of the test. (p. 36) Additionally, it is important to know the requesting department is only entitled to the information that is associated with “the presence or absence of job-related personality traits, characteristics, disorders, propensities, or conditions that would interfere with the performance of essential job functions.” (Bartol & Bartol, 2018, p. 36) Releasing any additional information outside of that scope may infringe upon the rights of the officer undergoing the evaluation.

The International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) have come up with an evaluation process for the psychologist giving the FFDE exam. Utilizing information the psychologist has been provided on the officer’s professional background, the IACP (2013) suggests psychologist use a variety of methods to determine duty fitness. Those methods include a review of background information, personality, cognitive, specialized or psychopathology testing, mental status reviews and clinical interviews, and interviews with third parties, or coordination with specialist if needed. (p. 5)

Once the FFDE is complete, the outcome is either the officer is found fit to continue duty or is deemed unfit for duty. All of the information collected must be related to why the officer was recommended for the FFDE. If the officer is found fit, chances are they will be returned to normal duty. However, if the officer is found to be unfit, the IACP (2013) states the psychological report must thoroughly outline what conditions is causing the officer to be considered unfit and recommendations for the future of the officer within the police department. (p. 6)

References

Bartol, A. & Bartol, C. (2018). Introduction to forensic psychology: Research and application (5th ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications. Retrieved from https://digitalbookshelf.argosy.edu/#/books/9781506387222/cfi/6/10!/4/2/6/8/10@0:93.4

International Association of Chiefs of Police. (2013). Psychological Fitness-for-Duty Evaluation Guidelines. Retrieved from https://www.theiacp.org/sites/default/files/all/p-r/Psych-FitnessforDutyEvaluation.pdf