Do Empathy and Psychological Mindedness Affect Police Officers' Decision to Enter Crisis Intervention Team Training?

Abstract

Objective It is generally assumed that police officers’ self-selection into the specialized, week-long Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) training is a critical feature of the overarching CIT program. However, issues pertaining to self-selection have not been empirically examined. In this study, it was hypothesized that officers entering CIT training, especially those self-selecting into it, would have: (1) a higher likelihood of exposure to/experience with mental health issues and mental health professionals, and (2) greater empathy and psychological mindedness. Methods 177 officers—including 109 non-CIT officers, 24 pre-CIT officers assigned to training, and 44 pre-CIT officers who voluntarily self-selected into training—were assessed before and after their week-long classes (non-CIT officers were enrolled in other courses). Basic sociodemographic characteristics were assessed, and four psychometrically sound measures of empathy and psychological mindedness were administered. Associations between officer status and sociodemographic variables, past exposure/experience, and empathy and psychological mindedness were examined. Results The three groups did not differ on three of four exposure/experience variables; however, self-selected pre-CIT officers were more likely to have prior exposure to mental health professionals. No differences were found between the three groups on measures of empathy or psychological mindedness. One measure of empathy increased significantly after the week-long CIT training. Conclusions Findings did not support the hypothesis that officers self-selecting into CIT training would have greater baseline empathy and psychological mindedness. While there may be other justifiable reasons to argue for the importance of volunteering, these two traits do not appear to be greater among officers self-selecting into CIT.

Marshaling administrative data to study the prevalence of mental illness in assault on law enforcement cases

“…Of course, there is a growing body of research showing that these programs produce results. For instance, research has found that, following CIT training, officers feel more prepared to handle calls involving PwMI (Borum et al, ), report less use of physical force (e.g., Compton, Broussard, Hankerson‐Dyson, Krishan, & Stewart, ), and divert these cases more frequently (e.g., Watson et al, ). At the same time, existing research also suggests that CIT programs have a minimal impact on arrest rates for individuals with mental illness (Skeem & Bibeau, ; Taheri, ; Watson et al, ).…”

Police officers' volunteering for (rather than being assigned to) Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) training: Evidence for a beneficial self‐selection effect

“…Exposure to the mental health field was based on four items that asked whether the participant (referred to herein as “self”), a family member, or a friend had received or was now receiving mental health treatment, or whether the participant or family members or friends had volunteered or worked in the mental health field (“other”) (Compton et al, ). Specifically, we created an exposure index, coded 0–5, to summarize these four items: 0 if they responded negatively to all four items; 1 for an affirmative response only to “other”; 2 if they responded yes only to “friend,” and maybe “other” as well; 3 if they responded yes to “family” but not “friend,” and maybe “other” as well; 4 if they responded yes to both “family” and “friend,” and maybe “other’ as well; and 5 if they responded affirmatively to “self.” The construct of empathy toward individuals with mental illnesses (Compton, Broussard, et al, ) was assessed with an adapted version of a nine‐item measure (Levy, Freitas, & Salovey, ). In response to “indicate how much you feel each emotion toward people with mental illnesses,” each item (e.g., compassion, disgust, respect) is rated 0, not at all, to 10, extremely; Cronbach's α = .78.…”

“…Once selected, each of the CIT officers maintains his/her role as a patrol officer and gains new duties and skills through the CIT training, serving as the designated responder and lead officer in mental health crisis events.” As an empirical question, however, the potential value of volunteering remains largely untested. Some evidence suggests that self‐selected CIT officers are more likely to have been exposed to mental health professionals, though they do not significantly differ in empathy or psychological mindedness before their training (Compton, Broussard, Hankerson‐Dyson, Krishan, & Stewart‐Hutto, ). However, little research is available on whether or not self‐selected/volunteering officers differ from assigned officers in meaningful ways after completing CIT training.…”

Increasing Mental Health Literacy in Law Enforcement to Improve Best Practices in Policing—Introduction of an Empirically Derived, Modular, Differentiated, and End-User Driven Training Design

“…In our exemplary training course design, we opt for a freely self-selectable and modular concept that allows adaption to shift and (arrange) schedules, as well as the general availability during working hours in order to avoid overtime. Concerning voluntary participation, research findings indicate no differences between police officers; whether self-selected or assigned to CIT-trainings regarding their empathy and psychological mindedness ( 41 ). However, some study results suggest a roughly doubled likelihood of prior exposure to mental health issues among self-selected officers, which clearly indicates a potential selection-bias if the trainings are offered exclusively on a voluntary basis ( 41 ).…”