{"id":6557,"date":"2017-10-04T06:06:36","date_gmt":"2017-10-04T10:06:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/policepsychologyblog.com\/?p=6557"},"modified":"2017-10-06T06:32:47","modified_gmt":"2017-10-06T10:32:47","slug":"pre-employment-psychological-screening-for-cops","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/policepsychologyblog.com\/?p=6557","title":{"rendered":"Pre-employment Psychological Screening for Cops"},"content":{"rendered":"

Pre-employment Psychological Screening for Cops<\/strong><\/h1>\n
by Ellen Kirschman, Ph.D.<\/span><\/p>\n
I\u2019ve been a police psychologist for thirty years;\u00a0counseling, teaching, giving workshops, and writing books, both\u00a0fiction and non-fiction. \u00a0In\u00a0my first book, Burying Ben<\/a><\/u>,<\/em>\u00a0my fictional alter-ego,\u00a0Dr. Dot Meyerhoff, deals with a rookie Ben Gomez who kills himself and leaves a note blaming her (not a spoiler, you find this out on page one).\u00a0 She wonders how her ex-husband, who did Ben\u2019s psych testing, ever found him\u00a0suitable to be a cop. And why he didn\u2019t uncover Ben\u2019s many lies?\u00a0\u00a0This is fiction. Or is it?<\/span><\/p>\n
The first time most\u00a0cops see\u00a0a psychologist\u00a0is for preemployment screening. Applying for a police position is a strenuous, time-consuming endeavor. By the time applicants pass all the requirements\u2014written forms, tests of reading and writing, role playing, a background investigation, a medical exam, a test of agility and, in many departments, a polygraph\u2014they feel like members of an elite club. Barely two out of 100 applicants will have made it this far.<\/span><\/p>\n
If the would-be\u00a0officers were merely interested in the job prior to applying, they are in love with it by the time they get to the last feared hurdle, the psychologist. Under the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA), the psychological exam is considered a medical evaluation that happens\u00a0only after the applicant receives a conditional offer of employment. Conditional, that is, upon the psychologist\u2019s report.<\/span><\/p>\n
Psychologists who screen prospective officers\u00a0are the first to admit that they are more effective screening problem people out than predicting who will make a good cop and why. Screening is a snapshot of the entry-level officer, considered valid\u00a0for only\u00a0one year. The psychological profile\u00a0you get after the wear and tear of the work itself can look very different, especially for those who had problems before being hired. In my most recent book, The Fifth Reflection<\/a>,\u00a0<\/em>time on the job, a stressful assignment investigating crimes against children, plus\u00a0organizational betrayal, crush Manny Ochoa, an otherwise psychologically hardy officer. Sending Dot on a mission to help Manny find a killer, re-balance his life, and save his marriage.<\/span><\/p>\n
The purpose of pre-employment screening is threefold:\u00a01) To determine whether an applicant meets the minimum requirements for psychological suitability mandated by jurisdictional statutes and regulations; 2) Is free from any emotional or mental conditions that might adversely affect the performance of safety-based duties and responsibilities, and 3) Is\u00a0capable of withstanding the psychological demands inherent in the position. In brief, the psychologist is looking at the applicant\u2019s judgment, stress resilience, anger management, integrity, conscientiousness, teamwork, and social competence. Fifteen to twenty percent\u00a0of the\u00a0applicants who are interviewed by the psychologist, won\u2019t go any further.<\/span><\/p>\n
People who conduct pre-employment screenings are almost always doctoral level psychologists with confirmed experience assessing public safety applicants and whose practice is in compliance with established professional standards. There are, however, psychologists who offer cut-rate on-line assessments using un-validated tests,\u00a0never interview\u00a0the applicant in person\u00a0or base their recommendations on\u00a0subjective,\u00a0looks-good-to-me interviews. The plot of The Right Wrong Thing<\/a>\u00a0<\/em>pivots on the catastrophic ripple effects generated by an ill-trained, unethical psychologist who was operating far above the limits of her competency.<\/span><\/p>\n
Properly done pre-employment screening consists of a\u00a0consent form signed by the applicant,\u00a0written psychological tests, a review of the background packet\u00a0including polygraph results when available, mental health records, and information regarding the applicant\u2019s relevant behavioral history (e.g., school, work, interpersonal, family, legal, financial, substance use) and a face-to-face interview, lasting\u00a0thirty minutes to an hour. After analyzing all this material, the psychologist then submits a report to the hiring agency that includes a\u00a0determination of the applicant\u2019s psychological suitability for employment.<\/span><\/p>\n
Can police psychologists do a better job screening out applicants with racist, homophobic,\u00a0or misogynistic attitudes? For the answer I turned to several colleagues with extensive experience in preemployment psychological screening. Their consensus is that\u00a0the\u00a0best place for ferreting out negative\u00a0attitudes is a comprehensive background investigation supplemented by a polygraph. Because preemployment psychological screening is based on self-disclosure, it is unlikely that applicants\u00a0who knowingly harbor\u00a0biases will\u00a0admit this to an examining psychologist and jeopardize their chances at the job. On the other hand, even\u00a0a thorough background investigation and a polygraph are not fail safe. What\u2019s to prevent\u00a0employers, co-workers, neighbors and family members, who are\u00a0invested in the applicant getting the job,\u00a0from\u00a0covering up any problematic behavior they have observed?<\/span><\/p>\n
The second-best place to dig deeply into the applicant\u2019s mind-set is the in-person interview.\u00a0Most screening psychologists use tests that measure\u00a0tolerance, social competence, cynicism,\u00a0and teamwork.\u00a0\u00a0While not specifically targeting racist,\u00a0misogynistic or homophobic\u00a0attitudes, the results\u00a0can point to problematic attitudes. When these attitudes are uncovered in the interview, or corroborate\u00a0behavior identified by the\u00a0background investigation and\/or the polygraph, then there are grounds to find the candidate unsuitable.<\/span><\/p>\n
Can the system be improved? \u00a0My psychology colleagues are always at work developing new and better ways to approach screening; revising\u00a0assessment instruments,\u00a0tracking results, comparing candidate profiles over time,\u00a0and amassing large data bases. But they need help. One way to improve\u00a0the selection process\u00a0is to create a coordinated feedback loop between psychologists and\u00a0police managers. When managers identify\u00a0hired officers who have become problem employees, this assists psychologists in validating and refining their selection procedures.<\/span><\/p>\n
A second path to improvement\u00a0again requires coordination between the screening psychologist and police managers. When\u00a0departments are short staffed and desperate for applicants, they sometimes fail\u00a0to reject a candidate who has demonstrated intolerance or bias. Or to inform\u00a0the psychologist about these known attitudes.\u00a0Rejecting a candidate for behavior that has already met department standards,\u00a0creates\u00a0a dilemma for the psychologist.<\/span><\/p>\n
How does Dot Meyerhoff handle such dilemmas and what will she do in the next mystery? I\u2019m just beginning to work on the first draft, but\u00a0I can tell you\u00a0things are not going well at\u00a0Kenilworth PD. And the problem seems to have started in the communication center,\u00a0where none of the dispatchers have ever been psychologically\u00a0screened.<\/span><\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
***The author wishes to thank to Susan Saxe-Clifford, Mike Roberts, Phil Trompetter, and Dave Corey for their consultation on this post.<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
Site Administrator:\u00a0 Gary S. Aumiller, Ph.D. ABPP<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n
Please share this article from down below.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n
*Please join the email list on the top of the sidebar and you can get these sent to your email.\u00a0 Also follow me on Twitter (**https:\/\/twitter.com\/ThinBlueMind<\/a>) for other articles and ideas, and YouTube at\u00a0 https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UCfjNw0510ipr3bX587IvAHg<\/a> .<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n*
\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/body>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Pre-employment Psychological Screening for Cops by Ellen Kirschman, Ph.D. I\u2019ve been a police psychologist for thirty years;\u00a0counseling, teaching, giving workshops, and writing books, both\u00a0fiction and non-fiction. \u00a0In\u00a0my first book, Burying Ben,\u00a0my fictional alter-ego,\u00a0Dr. Dot Meyerhoff, deals with a rookie Ben Gomez who kills himself and leaves a note blaming her (not a spoiler, you find […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[17168877],"tags":[17168803,17168797,17169014],"class_list":["post-6557","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-tests","tag-police","tag-police-psychology","tag-screenings"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":682,"url":"http:\/\/policepsychologyblog.com\/?p=682","url_meta":{"origin":6557,"position":0},"title":"Police Psychology | Fit To Be A Cop? 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Ph.D.\u00a0 ABPP \u00a0 What if in the hiring process for police officers you could pick someone resistant to Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, have the best ability to function under pressure, make good quick decisions with better accuracy than normal people, and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Public Information Bureau"","block_context":{"text":"Public Information Bureau","link":"http:\/\/policepsychologyblog.com\/?cat=17168888"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/policepsychologyblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/Stroop-effect-3-300x19.png?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":5851,"url":"http:\/\/policepsychologyblog.com\/?p=5851","url_meta":{"origin":6557,"position":3},"title":"Police Psychology | Master Police Coaches: \u201cBuilding A Better Cop\u201d","author":"Gary Aumiller","date":"May 3, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Police Psychology | Master Police Coaches: \u201cBuilding A Better Cop\u201d Marla Friedman, Police Psychologist \u00a0 Born out of the academy, the Probationer is a blank slate. Mega assembly required running the gamut from appropriate deployment of de-escalation and tactical skills training, mental health and suicide prevention techniques, and development of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Public Information Bureau"","block_context":{"text":"Public Information Bureau","link":"http:\/\/policepsychologyblog.com\/?cat=17168888"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/policepsychologyblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/Yerkes-Dodson-law-300x222.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":57,"url":"http:\/\/policepsychologyblog.com\/?p=57","url_meta":{"origin":6557,"position":4},"title":"Book Review: Research in Law Enforcement Selection","author":"Gary Aumiller","date":"February 27, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"I don\u2019t do Meta Analysis and don\u2019t do pre-employment evaluations.\u00a0 Most of my life I have had little interest in either.\u00a0 The mixing of the two for me should be somewhat like eating overdone beef liver cooked in castor oil and chasing it down with Campari (the Italian liquor that\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Books"","block_context":{"text":"Books","link":"http:\/\/policepsychologyblog.com\/?cat=17168876"},"img":{"alt_text":"aamodt","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/policepsychologyblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/aamodt.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":386,"url":"http:\/\/policepsychologyblog.com\/?p=386","url_meta":{"origin":6557,"position":5},"title":"Police Psychology | The Police Candidate Interpretive Report","author":"Gary Aumiller","date":"June 5, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"The Police Candidate Interpretive Report \u00a0 I had one of the first cell phones for public consumption.\u00a0 It fit in a bag.\u00a0 The battery lasted minutes not hours, and it was essentially a car phone that could be moved around.\u00a0 But visions of Dick Tracy\u2019s watch and Agent 86\u2019s shoe\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Tests"","block_context":{"text":"Tests","link":"http:\/\/policepsychologyblog.com\/?cat=17168877"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p60sbO-1HL","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/policepsychologyblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6557","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/policepsychologyblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/policepsychologyblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/policepsychologyblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/policepsychologyblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6557"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/policepsychologyblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6557\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6604,"href":"http:\/\/policepsychologyblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6557\/revisions\/6604"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/policepsychologyblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6557"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/policepsychologyblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6557"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/policepsychologyblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6557"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}