Controlling Police Use of Excessive Force: The Role of the Police Psychologist, Research in Brief

• NCJ Number: 150063
• Author(s): E M Scrivner
• Date Published: October 1994
• Length: 6 pages
• Publication Series: NIJ Research in Brief
• Agencies: NIJ
• Publication Type: Survey

Annotation

This paper discusses the role of police psychologists in identifying officers at risk of using excessive force and in preventing its use.

Abstract

Police psychologists were interviewed to examine the types of services they provide and how those services are used to counter potential police violence. The most frequently provided psychological services were counseling and evaluation, more than monitoring and training officers in appropriate behavior. Psychologists have created several profiles of officers at risk of excessive violence. Those psychologists interviewed for this study recommended increasing behavioral monitoring and providing better training as means of preventing the use of violence. In addition, the psychologists advocated the creation of screening methods that would enable them to examine candidate officers' decisionmaking abilities and quality of interpersonal relations and evaluate their suitability for community policing. 1 note