Thin Blue Mind / Smokey Heroes

Police Psychology | Parkinson’s Law by Gary S. Aumiller, Ph.D.  ABPP   In 1955, a year before my birth, an English historian who had worked in civil service was written up in the magazine “The Economist” about a law of nature that would control my life, in fact, controls many of us.  He said “work […]

Police Psychology | Active School Shooter Drills:  A Reflection; A Request By Paul Cech   When I first heard about active school shooter training from a colleague who had attended a training session, I quickly formed a cautious opinion. In the year since then, I have been sorting through journal articles, books, and other resources […]

Police Psychology | Procrastination:   When Later Becomes Never by Gary S. Aumiller, Ph.D. ABPP    Police psychology deals with many issues that are unique, but working in law enforcement also has many issues that other stressful jobs do. Procrastination is a problem that affects a huge number of people in the world. It is a […]

Police Psychology | The Schedule is the Key by Gary S. Aumiller, Ph.D.  ABPP   We all like being rewarded for the things we do. I mean, who wouldn’t want a sticker on your chart, or an ice cream cone, or a salary raise, every time you do something good?  In this article, we are […]

Police Psychology | Persistence in Law Enforcement Gary S. Aumiller, Ph.D. ABPP I saw the musical On Your Feet last night on Broadway.  It was about Gloria and Emilio Estafan and their story of a rise to fame and fortune.  She was the first big Hispanic crossover in the music field and later Emilio had […]

Sports to Law Enforcement: Seven Success Lessons from Sports  Guest Blogger Dr. Bill Cottringer has worked and taught in the criminal justice field for over 50 years and currently serves as Executive VP for Puget Sound Security companies in Bellevue, WA.  He has published 9 books and over 250 professional articles. He is also a […]

Police Psychology | Viral Infection   There are some things Police Psychology just hasn’t figured out, in fact all of psychology is left puzzled when something goes viral. I was recently sent a video about a woman who has heard her fiancé was gunned down in the street after a Mardi Gras Parade. She was […]

Police Psychology | The Mental Game in Law Enforcement “90 percent of the game is half mental” (attributed to Yogi Berra) by Doug Gentz, Ph.D. – Psychological Services After you’ve acquired the knowledge and skills required for any performance, further improvement depends on your ability to manage your nervous system in a way that lets […]

Police Psychology | Can You Be a Virtuoso?   Police Officers have noted it way before others and police psychology has to deal with it when they talk to anyone on-the-job. There is a major difference between “rookies” and the cop that has been on the job for awhile. That difference is the same in […]

Police Psychology | What You Can Learn from a 2-Year Old   In police psychology, I find a lot of officers who just can’t do it. There are very few things that toddlers know how to do better than adults. For instance, although sometimes when I’m driving I encounter cars that may as well have […]

Police Psychology:  How to Create Focus   In police psychology losing focus can be a life or death situation for a police officer.  Focus is thus extremely important for police psychology and dealing with police stress. Ever since you started school, all those many years ago, you probably heard the words, “pay-attention!” “you need to […]

Get Your Butt Moving   You don’t normally think of Isaac Newton or Galileo Galilei when you think about police psychology, but that is a mistake. These two weird-looking men while daydreaming under that apple tree or looking up at the stars came up with a theory that explains much of police psychology and much […]