NCJ Number
188994
Journal
Journal of Police and Criminal Psychology Volume: 15 Issue: 2 Dated: Fall 2000 Pages: 8,9,10
Date Published
2000
Length
3 pages
Annotation
This article explains the role of the industrial/organizational (I/O) psychologist, with attention to such a role in law enforcement agencies, and describes the education and training necessary to enter this career field.
Abstract
I/O psychologists are professionals who apply their knowledge of psychology to the workplace. In the case of law enforcement agencies, I/O psychologists generally help select, train, evaluate, and motivate law enforcement personnel. The I/O psychologist's role in police selection includes a job analysis and the identification of the knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics needed to perform the job tasks. The next task is to identify the ways of measuring the extent to which applicants possess the necessary skills, knowledge, and abilities. The evaluation of law enforcement personnel includes the creation of a job-related performance appraisal instrument, the identification of relevant objective measures of performance, the development of a means for documenting behavior, and the training of supervisors in how to rate and provide feedback to their subordinates. Other tasks of the I/O psychologist described in this article are the training of officers and their supervisors, human resource consulting, and research. The article concludes with a description of how to become an I/O psychologist who works with police departments. A listing of 8 resources