The state of mental health training in basic police curricula: A national level examination

ABSTRACT

Police officers are front-line mental health responders who make daily decisions regarding persons with mental illness. However, little is known about what mental health training (MHT) states require from their future police officers. This study aims to evaluate the emphasis placed on MHT for police recruits across the United States. Specifically, we ask: 1) What (if any) are the minimum MHT hours police recruits must complete in the basic training academy? 2)What are the characteristics of state-mandated MHT in basic police academies? Our findings show that, on average, states devote 1.1% (7.28 hours) of their basic training curricula to MHT. We also identify four major contextual themes that depict MHT in police basic training. In this study, we offer public safety leaders, policymakers, and curriculum designers up-to-date data on the current state of MHT in basic police academies and recommendations for how it can be improved.

KEYWORDS:

• Basic academy
• content analysis
• persons with mental illness
• police training and education
• recruits
• street level bureaucrats (SLB)

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1. Hawaii does not have a standards and training commission.

2. “NA” represents states that do not specify minimum required hours for specific courses and/or for the basic police training program as a whole.

3. Some states utilize curricula that specify mandatory instruction topics but not specific training hours, allowing academies the freedom to assign their hours for each topic. Therefore, these curricula could not be included in the calculation.

4. It is important to note that these numbers represent state-mandated training hours only. Many regional academies across the country report significantly exceeding the minimum training standard set by their POST agencies.

5. Note that several states have more than one disability-related course in the curriculum. Therefore, the Ns from samples 1 and 2 do not add up to the N of sample 3.

6. Four states were excluded from this sample as we could not identify mental health or disability training in their curricula. Also, as previously mentioned, Hawaii does not have a state training standards commission.

7. “NA” represents states that do not specify minimum required hours for specific courses and/or for the basic police training program as a whole.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Galia Cohen

Galia Cohen is department head and assistant professor of Public Administration at Tarleton State University, Texas. She is also a police instructor conducting professional development training for law enforcement professionals across the U.S. Her research focuses on public safety collaboration, police training, and police administration.

Matt Bagwell

Matt Bagwell A senior research and data analyst at the Oregon Higher Education Coordinating Commission. His research areas of interest include organizational behavior and culture, work-life balance, health and well-being.