Beliefs about Causes of Schizophrenia among Police Officers Before and After Crisis Intervention Team Training

Abstract

This study examined the ways in which beliefs about the causes of schizophrenia change after crisis intervention team (CIT) training of police officers. Comparisons of pre- and post-training scores from 159 officers revealed a decrease in endorsement of items pertaining to personal/family/social stressors and items inconsistent with contemporary conceptions of risk, as well as an increase in endorsement of items consistent with modern biological conceptions of the causation of schizophrenia. Changes in causal beliefs were associated with personal and family history of psychiatric treatment among officers. Findings indicate a need for further research in this area, and suggest that some characteristics of officers may be associated with an increased capacity for knowledge/attitudinal change during CIT training.

The crisis intervention team (CIT) model: An evidence‐based policing practice?

“…Pre-training/post-training surveys have demonstrated improvements in knowledge, attitudes, and stigma with regard to schizophrenia (Compton, Esterberg, McGee, Kotwicki, & Oliva, 2006;Ellis, 2014); enhanced self-efficacy and reduced social distance stigma with regard to schizophrenia, depression, alcohol dependence, and cocaine dependence (Bahora, Hanafi, Chien, & Compton, 2008); and psychiatry-congruent beliefs about the causes of schizophrenia (Demir, Broussard, Goulding, & Compton, 2009). The largest and most rigorous study to date (Compton et al, 2014a) compared 251 CIT-trained officers (at a median of 22 months post-training) with 335 non-CIT officers, in terms of knowledge, diverse attitudes, and skills; many measures were linked to two vignettes, in written and video formats, depicting typical police encounters with individuals with psychosis or suicidality.…”

Decriminalizing mental illness: specialized policing responses

“…8 These important learning strategies are designed to increase empathy toward persons suffering from a mental illness. When dealing with persons exhibiting psychotic agitation, CIT-trained officers have increased awareness that physical interventions are likely to be ineffective and are less likely to use force, 11,12 as well as an appreciation that the behaviors exhibited by persons with schizophrenia have biological causes. 13 A training approach that is widely accepted as effective in CIT training programs are role-playing exercises during which police officers interact with actors presenting with psychiatric-related behaviors commonly encountered in the field.…”

Police encounters among a community sample of children and youth accessing mental health services

“…As first responders, it is important for police officers to have appropriate knowledge about mental health, wellbeing, and distress and in particular about children and youth in order to identify and effectively intervene with behaviors as mental health versus criminal concerns (Canada et al, 2012;Cotton & Coleman, 2008). Officer training in mental health and crisis intervention was identified as instrumental in shifting negative views that mental health issues were a matter of personal and/or family misconduct resulting in a decrease of stigmatization by police officers (Chopko, 2011;Demir, Broussard, Goulding, & Compton, 2009).…”