When new recruits start their training at the Indiana Law Enforcement Academy in Plainfield, Indiana, the trainees may have some University of Indianapolis School of Psychological Sciences doctoral students to thank for part of their curriculum. Students in Professor David Wantz’s Psychological Consultation and Education class spent a semester reviewing training material at the Academy and making suggestions for improvement.
The graduate psychology students from the School of Psychological Sciences discovered that the Academy curriculum that was being employed to understand human behavior was out of date. As part of a class assignment, the doctoral students reviewed the content being taught and realized that their knowledge of human behavior and reaction could be helpful. The UIndy doctoral psychology students developed new behavioral objectives designed to keep officers calm, safe, and alert while on duty. Students came up with a simple model that can be applied to all the skills the Academy trainees are learning about having situational awareness, maintaining a duty to self, and maintaining a duty to others. Situational awareness is about understanding how to lower anxiety in any situation and how to predict whether anxiety is escalating.
The psychology students want the police recruits to become aware of how others may react to their behaviors and how an officer’s action can affect a situation. Methods such as lowering one’s voice, repeating a command, or simply slowing down can help to lower anxiety in a situation. To help the trainees quickly identify risk factors in a situation, the graduate psychology students developed a protocol called VEST, which refers to the potential for Violence, Emotional state, Situation, and Type of call. The officers can use a simple red/yellow/green evaluation process to determine the level of action needed.
“We want to find ways to help the officers understand the relationship between performance and anxiety,” explains Dr. Wantz. “Our students were using their clinical skills to inform their consultation, training, and teaching in a real-world setting.”
In May, psychology students began working with the Academy to help provide an evaluation of its recruits’ reading comprehension. The UIndy team will make recommendations about possible changes to the exam. Dr. Wantz would like students to understand that as psychologists, they may be asked to consult, evaluate, and use their skills beyond a private practice.
(Reprinted from the 2012 issue of 1400, a publication of the University of Indianapolis)
As I boarded the Megabus in downtown Indianapolis and headed to Chicago to attend the 2012 Combined Sections Meeting (CSM), I reminisced that this time last year, the Blizzard of 2011 hit Chicago and left many people and cars abandoned and stranded on Lake Shore Drive. I was sure hoping the weather would be mild during CSM between the dates of Wednesday, Feb. 8 - Saturday, Feb. 11, 2012. The ride was thoroughly delightful, napping a bit, browsing the internet, and taking in the sites of the wind farms in northern Indiana. Upon arriving at Union Station, downtown Chicago, it was quite a walk in the brisk Chicago wind, to the Hard Rock Hotel. The check-in was interesting, as it was a challenge to hear what the receptionist was saying over the loud rock and roll music playing in the lobby. It was then time to take the hike down Michigan Ave to the Hilton where on-site registration was taking place. The hotel lobby was all-a-buzz with many familiar faces and old friends to catch up with. The shuttles were running full-force from the hotels on Michigan Ave to the McCormick Place Convention Center, several miles away. The convention center was enormous, and the Chicago Automobile Show was going on at the same location as the APTA conference.
As finals week at UIndy comes to a close, Graduation is sure to follow.
CSM as an elected member of the Student Assembly Board of Directors (SABoD) was one of the best experiences I have ever had.