An Investigation of Biographical Information as a Predictor of Employment Termination among Law Enforcement Officers |
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Authors: | Adrianne M Brennan Cary D Rostow Robert D Davis Benjamin D Hill |
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Institution: | (1) Department of Psychiatry, LSU Heath Sciences Center at New Orleans, 210 State Street, Suite 3111 South, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA;(2) Police Psychologist, Matrix, Inc, 740 Colonial Drive, Baton Rouge, LA 70806, USA;(3) Rhode Island Hospital, 593 Eddy Street, POB Suite 430, Providence, RI 02903, USA |
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Abstract: | An important service that police psychology can offer law enforcement administrators is assistance in the selection of future
officers. Police psychologists have traditionally focused on the identification of psychopathology and exclusion of applicants
who were found to be mentally ill. The introduction of the Americans with Disabilities Act (1990) has changed what had been
considered appropriate exclusion criteria because of the introduction of increased civil rights protections for persons with
disabilities. At the same time, increasing civil liability for law enforcement departments in regard to officer misconduct
has compelled police psychologist to evaluate potential for future misconduct by non-clinical means. The scientific examination
of biographical data may be one method of establishing the relationship between officer candidate variables and future misconduct.
This paper examined the predictive validity of biographical information for a sample of 2965 police officer candidates. Results
indicated that several biographical variables were significantly correlated with later termination. However, results of regression
analyses indicated that biographical variables alone accounted for limited variance in the prediction of police officer termination.
The use of biographical information as a sole determinant of police candidate suitability was not supported and the use of
additional sources of data would be required for effectual forecasting purposes. |
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