Consultation with police on human relations training

Mental health training and consultation with suburban police

A community mental health consultation and education program with 10 suburban police departments has helped foster the development of an awareness of mental health issues on the part of police officers and their chiefs and increased their orientation toward prevention of problems before they arise. The keys to success in this project have been flexibility in the application of consultation and training modalities, a willingness to view the world through the police officers' eyes, and the cooperative involvement of officers and their chiefs in all phases of program planning.

Unterstanding one's clients: an attempt to improve sensitivity and morale in police recruits

Recognizing that effective police work demands sensitivity to human behavior and motivation, the importance of police selection and training procedures as they affect human interactional skills becomes apparent. A program of assessment was described. Recruits beginning training were somewhat alienated and possessed no unusual sensitivity to people. Academy training, buttressed by additional experiences (cognitive training in the behavioral and social sciences for one group; affective-experiential training for conflict management for a second group) did not affect sensitivity, alienation, or police cynicism, as measured. The recruits, however, judged the latter training experience as more worthwhile for policemen. Recruits' lack of trust in authority was among the considerations discussed.