FPSY 3900 Psychology of Policing_W1.pptx

FPSY 3900 PSYCHOLOGY OF POLICING Ahmet Demirden, Ph.D. Welcome to 3500 AGENDA for TODAY Dr. Ahmet Demirden info Review – Course Outline / Exams Lecture Overview  What the course is all about  Expectations  Academic Integrity  Questions Course Description  This course will provide a...

FPSY 3900 PSYCHOLOGY OF POLICING Ahmet Demirden, Ph.D. Welcome to 3500 AGENDA for TODAY Dr. Ahmet Demirden info Review – Course Outline / Exams Lecture Overview  What the course is all about  Expectations  Academic Integrity  Questions Course Description  This course will provide a broad overview of policing as it relates to psychological concepts and theories.  In this course, students will be exposed to the domains within which police psychologists work and to theories and methods that police researchers use to understand various aspects of policing.  Topics will include  aggression and violence,  investigative interviews,  police selection,  stress and policing,  crime patterns and offender profiling,  police use of force,  hostage taking and negotiation, and  community policing Assignments and Tests Exams (80%): There will be two midterm and one final exam. The in-class midterm tests (Monday, October 16th & November 13th) will cover the material immediately preceding them (they are non-cumulative) and will each count for 25% of the final grade     Location: In class Date: October 16th Time: 11:10am to 2:00pm Value: 25%     Location: In class Date: November 13th Time: 11:10am to 2:00pm Value: 25% Assignments and Tests  The final exam will be scheduled by the Registrar’s office during the official exam period (December 6th to 16th). It will cover material presented after the second midterm test (it is non-cumulative) and will count for 30% of the final grade.  Location: TBD  Date: December 6th to December 16th, 2017  Time: 3 hours  Value: 30% Assignments and Tests  All midterms and exams may be a combination of multiple choice and short answer questions and will both be CLOSED-BOOK.  The midterms and final exam will be written using scantrons (paper and pencil).  Short answers are to be written in pen.  Please bring a couple of pencils, pens, and a good eraser.  Students are responsible for all material covered in the course (including, but not limited to – lectures, textbook, discussions, videos, guest speakers, assigned readings, examples, animations, the syllabus, and demonstrations). Assignment – (20%): Risk Assessment  Risk assessment is a complex process that involves clinical analysis, actuarial data, and professional judgment.  Risk assessment is a critical part of the justice system as it affects policing strategy, correctional planning, and bail and release.  Civilian members of policing forces are often responsible for contributing to risk assessment reports.  In this assignment, you will create a risk assessment report based on a number of original documents and your own completion of the ODARA tool.  Please note that this scenario is comprised of a fictional storyline.  Other than the police officer and City of Orillia all other characters, times, dates and circumstances were imagined.  Any resemblance to actual events is purely coincidental Introduction  I am a former police officer with TPS;  B.A. in Psychology (YORK) University, MADS in ABA (Brock), and Ph.D. in Psychology (AYBU);  In my PhD research, I investigated the motivational and emotions aspects of interpersonal conflict resolution strategies;  I am passionate about application of evidence based practices in policing.  I have facilitated in service training for several international organizations (e.g., the UN, CEPOL, INTERPA, and AEPC) Police psychology  The application of the principles and methods of psychological science to assist  Law enforcement agencies,  Their professionals, and  The relationship between the police and the communities they “protect and serve.”  Police psychology should be viewed more by tis scope than by the duties of the police psychologists in police organizations. Core Domains and Specific Proficiencies of Police Psychology  ASSESSMENT DOMAIN:  Psychological fitness for-duty evaluations of incumbents  Evaluations (medical) for high risk, high demand assignments  Test development  INTERVENTION DOMAIN:  Individual therapy or counseling  Critical Incident early intervention  Substance abuse treatment  OPERATIONAL DOMAIN  Psychological intelligence  Criminal Profiling  Threat assessment  CONSULTING DOMAIN  Organizational development  Executive consultation  Consulting related education and training The nexus between ABS and Law Enforcement The ethical practice of police psychology  Policing practices informed by the tenets of procedural justice (PJ) are consistent with psychologists’ ethical principles  The global shift to evidence-based policing (EBP) has increased police reliance on  psychological research on interrogation and interviews  thereby engaging more psychologists in work with or for policing organizations. The ethical practice of police psychology  There are some issues and role conflicts when psychologists assist law enforcement with interviews.  The ethical principles and standards of practice pertaining to this growing area of forensic consultation received little public discussion  Until the human rights abuses and interrogations conducted by the US military post9/11 at Abu Ghraib and other American prisons in Iraq were publicized in 2003-04. War on Terrorism  Suspected terrorists were transferred to CIA “black sites” (secret prisons) outside of US borders and  Subjected to enhanced interrogation techniques (EITs) authorized by President Bush  (e.g., waterboarding; short-shackling; isolation; deprivation of sleep, light, and sound), based on “ticking time bomb scenarios”.  In 2005, the APA convened a Presidential Task Force on Psychological Ethics and National Security (12 Ethical confusion and conflict were identified)  Later, it was clarified that psychologists may not engage in either deception or coercion. Evidence-based policing and ethical practice (EBP)  Global standard in contemporary policing practice  EBP practices should meet two standards  Most effective  Least harm  EBP has uncovered a bias by police and government favoring psychical or “hard” evidence. Soft science, hard science, and relational skills in policing  Starting in the 1970s, theories of community policing steadily gained traction, with a focus on interpersonal relational values (e.g., procedural fairness).  These approaches demonstrate that the manner in which police communicate with the public and with suspects affects police legitimacy  However, heightened security concerns and criminal justice policies have privileged seemingly more objective, and the “hard” sciences. Evidence-based interviewing The interrogation measures we adopt define who we are as a society  Torture is not theoretically supported or evidence based and produces unreliable information (Vrij et al., 2017).  Nonetheless, more than 140 countries continue to endorse torture (Amnesty International, 2014), and  Many jurisdictions aside from North America continue to use investigative methods that are not compliant with EBP.  The discipline of psychology has made substantial contributions to EBP.  The development of a body of specialized knowledge on effective communication skills on gather intelligence and oral evidence from suspects, sources, and witnesses is a prime example. A paradigm shift:  From accusatory, guilt-presumptive, confession based approaches  To direct, information-gathering, and  Strategic approaches to develop rapport and elicit an account. Continuum of ethical compliance in interview practice  Information gathering  Strategic techniques  Confession-focus techniques  Torture  When psychologists use their training in an effort to strip interviewees of their autonomy, this is dehumanizing, and crosses the ethical line.  Doing harm vs allowing harm Interviewing research incorporating procedural justice tenets  Research with extremists has revealed that their needs and drives appeared undifferentiated from those of the rest of the population  (i.e., missing loved ones, longing for a normal life, feelings of guilt, burnout,  Quantitative analyses of interviews with high-value detainees  Rapport and relationship building strategies were most frequently used multi-nationally and had a positive effect on suspect cooperation  Interviewers with greater interpersonal competence and versatility were more successful at engaging detainees, securing their cooperation, and adducing information The role of the psychologist in the screening and selection of law enforcement applicants  It is common for psychologists to work with law enforcement agencies in the selection and promotion of law enforcement personnel.  these psychologists have a background either in industrial-organizational psychology (I-O psychology) or in clinical psychology.  I-O psychologists are involved in  developing, selecting, and administering tests to determine  whether applicants have the competencies necessary to perform the job.  Clinical psychologists administer tests and conduct clinical interviews to determine  Whether applicants who possess the competencies needed to perform law enforcement duties are psychologically suited to perform these duties. Selecting applicants  The first step in the selection process is to conduct a job analysis to determine  The tasks that must be performed,  The conditions under which the tasks are performed, and  The competencies needed to perform the tasks under the identified conditions.  This information is obtained in a variety of ways including observations, interviews, and task inventories. The end result of a job analysis is a report that lists:  Each task, the conditions, the competencies A Law Enforcement Agency may want:  Cadets who will do well in the academy  Officers with a high level of on-the-job performance, as indicated by:      Supervisor ratings Activity (citations, arrests) Attendance Tenure Safety  Officers who do not cause trouble, as indicated by:     Citizen complaints Department discipline Unnecessary use of force Law suits  •Officers who engage in organizational citizenship behaviors  People who “play nice”  People who do the “extras” Identifying the best way to tap each competency  Potential methods might include        cognitive ability tests, background checks, simulations and work samples, physical ability tests, personality inventories, structured interviews, and biographical information Assessments that predict law enforcement performance  Cognitive ability  Cognitive ability tests can take many forms, ranging from a test of a single construct (e.g., reading) to tests of general cognitive  Background information  comes from a variety of sources, such as application blanks, criminal history checks, psychological interviews, polygraphs, and background investigations  Interviews  Interviews are a common component of the law enforcement selection process, as they are with most occupational areas. The interviews used by law enforcement agencies vary on two main factors: the number and type of interviewers and the degree of structure of the interview.  Personality inventories  Although there are hundreds of personality inventories available, they generally fall into one of the two broad categories based on their intended purpose: measures of psychopathology and measures of normal personality. What methods should the psychologist use?  A psychologist who has no specialized training in police psychology may make recommendations based on “clinical judgements” derived from test scores, observations, and interview material.  Unfortunately, error rates for such clinical recommendations can be quite high.  Instead, the psychologist should use actuarial-type methods similar to those used by life insurance companies, which look at the statistical relationship between the presence of behavioral or other indicators and a later event(s) Interpretation of the data & Report and recommendations  Impression management or “Faking good”  Candidates with obvious psychopathology or problematic behavioral characteristics are generally screened out by the hiring agency well before the psychological evaluation.  At the conclusion of the evaluation procedures, the psychologist will integrate all of the findings and will provide to the agency a written report summarizing those findings  The report may contain a rating of the applicant’s suitability or pass and fail conclusions.  Although it is ultimately the law enforcement agency that makes the decision as to whether to hire an applicant, most departments require a specific hiring recommendation from a psychologist. TAKE AWAYS 1 2 3 Next week Chapter 3 Incorporating psychological skills in police academy training See you all again Week 2 – Monday September 111th 