“We’re Not the Cure, We’re Just the Band-Aid”: The Interplay of Structure, Culture, and Practice in Police Service Provision to Persons with Mental Illnesses

Abstract

This study uses the constellation approach of transition theory as a theoretical framework to depict the ways in which facilitators and barriers in police system's structure, culture, and practice interact to shape police response to persons with mental illnesses (PWMIs). The study utilizes the framework method to analyze 57 in-depth interviews with police officers in Texas. Using a hybrid approach of inductive and deductive thematic analysis, we develop a matrix of four quadrants characterizing the constellation of mental health service provision by police: (1) structural barriers (deficits in resources, unsuccessful collaboration, lack of training), (2) structural facilitators (crisis intervention teams, informal cross-disciplinary collaborations, technology), (3) cultural barriers (role conflict, perceived inability to help, stigma), and (4) cultural facilitators (the police mission ‘to serve and protect’, improving police public image, managerial support). The study ends with recommendations for the scaling up of police mental health service provision to PWMIs.

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“…Some studies focus on officers seeking to do the best in a difficult situation, which includes reflecting on their willingness to risk their life (Cohen, 2022;Cohen & Golan-Nadir, 2020). Other studies, in ways akin to research on other public services, look at how police adapt implementation for the benefit of clients/citizens (inter alia, Brockmann, 2017;Cohen, 2023;Cohen & Cohen, 2023). One recent study suggests "minimal compliance with job requirements" (Lotta et al, 2023, p. 2) when working under coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) conditions, as a means of selfpreservation.…”