what kind of officers are police departments looking for and why

What Kind of Officers are Police Departments Looking for and Why
Student’s Name
Institution Affiliation
The process of police officer selection in most police academies has many similarities than differences (Schoenfeld, 1980). The recruit must progressively go through the public service test, psychiatric test, oral interview, agility, and physical strength assessment, medical examination, and background investigation (Van Maanen, 1975). Upon successful completion of the evaluation, the applicant is hired based on the approved openings. The recruit then joins the training section for further screening (Van Maanen, 1975). The training process scans for qualities such as harsh detailed organization, didactic instruction, and strict discipline (Van Maanen, 1975).
The selection also focuses on the personality of an individual (Twersky, 2005). For one to be listed as a successful applicant, he/she must possess excellent character for policing function. Applicants are taken through tests to determine their emotional fitness or inappropriateness necessary for law enforcement (Twersky, 2005). Police departments utilize the MMPI for personality screening. Qualities scanned by the MMPI includes the applicant’s ability to maintain a feeling of individual identity and self-consciousness (Twersky, 2005). Capacity to endure and control robust negative distress without opting for avoidance methodologies such as drug abuse, dissociation, or outwards tension reducing tendencies. Ability to form and uphold significant contacts with other individuals not troubled by fear of desertion or unfitting projections.

The traits are crucial for effective performance in law enforcement (Twersky, 2005).
The assessment of applicants’ personality is key to determining the stressor levels of individuals and their burnout experience (Queirós, 2013). Police work burns out, and stressors have damaging impacts on the officers’ mental and physical well-being including aggressive tendencies, depression, and suicide (Queirós, 2013). Thus, various discussions have arisen analyzing the motivations and reasons behind one’s decision to join law enforcement: for instance, ‘cops are born, not made’ (Queirós, 2013), or whether the choice is motivated by the culture of the job or its socialization profile that affects the character profile of an officer as a result of his/her work experience (Kaminski, 1993).
Reference
Kaminski, R. J. (1993). Police minority recruitment: Predicting who will say yes to an offer for a job as a cop. Journal of Criminal justice, 21(4), 395-409.
Queirós, C., Kaiseler, M., & da Silva, A. L. (2013). Burnout as a predictor of aggressivity among police officers.
Schoenfeld, L. S., Kobos, J. C., & Phinney, I. R. (1980). Screening police applicants: A study of reliability with the MMPI. Psychological Reports, 47(2), 419-425.
Twersky-Glasner, A. (2005). Police personality: What is it and why are they like that?. Journal of Police and Criminal Psychology, 20(1), 56-67.
Van Maanen, J. (1975). Police socialization: A longitudinal examination of job attitudes in an urban police department. Administrative science quarterly, 207-228.