Research Paper on Training in 21st Century for Police Officers

Introduction

The police force is entitled to provide competent services to the general public in alignment with the law. Each member of the police force has a duty to obey the law and reinforce law and order in the society without any form of biasness. In the 21st century, the majority of police officers face tremendous challenges while carrying out their duties to the people. Factors such as ethnicity, political influence, diversity, and cultural differences are the core causes of incompetency among police officers. However, the training offered to the police officers in the 21st-century aim at educating the police officers about ethical, legal, physical and mental requirements. The knowledge about these aspects helps to reinforce sanity and competency among police officers. This paper seeks to explain the training in the 21st century for the police officers based on the legal, ethical, mental and physical knowledge.

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Ethical Training

The police officers are expected to demonstrate a high standard of behaviour while executing their duties and services to the society. This is because they are a steward of the public trust and should reinforce ethical standards while on duty. During the training, the police officers are taught about the importance of exercising high ethical standards and are expected to comply with the professional code of ethics that outlines their roles (Milazzo & Hansen 85). Ethical training for the police is emphasized in the 21st century to promote ethical standards in the police force. As a result, a police officer is able to develop his or her moral compass, ethical base or character by interacting with others during the training session (Quinet, Nunn & Kincaid 265). Ethics forms an integral part of a well-established society that recognizes and promotes moral practices. Training in the 21st century for the police officers incorporates and encourages the police officers to observe the professional code of ethics at all time during when discharging their duties to the public.

Legal Training

The training framework of the police officers in the 21st century ensures that they understand the legal requirements before commencing their duties. In this training, the police officers are educated on legal issues and how to execute the law without violating the rights of other people (Milazzo & Hansen 85). The training equips the police officer with competent knowledge about the rule of law and legal issues essential for exercising justice. The police officers are reminded about the importance of obeying the law of the state and using legal approached outlined in the constitution to reinforce the law. In this case, the officers are banned from using unethical and illegal means to apprehend a suspect or mistreat a culprit (Teller &Jennifer 233). Legal training helps the police officers to respect the law by limiting them from external matters not defined in the constitution. Therefore, the 21st training of the police officers focuses on enlightening the officers about legal issues to prevent conflicting with the law when on duty.

Physical Training

Training in the 21st century for the police officers focus providing physical fitness to improve the performance and safety of the police officers. Each member of the police force is required to meet a certain level of physical fitness to increase his or strength. Physical training is essential in equipping police officers with good health. Most of the duties allocated for the police offices require physical health and strength in order to carry out the tasks appropriately. Exposure of the police officers to physical training help in reducing cases of fatigue and muscle straining during their duties. Police officers are required to conduct thorough operations and tour various places. As a result, the physical training offered by various police departments is essential to help the officers to withstand hardships during their duties (Sorensen 10).

In addition, physical exercise provides police officers with an opportunity to learn new tactics for self-defense during dangerous operations. Many cases have been reported where the public confronted police officers and killed, in the event of such incidences the police officers who have undergone physical training are able to overcome them. Therefore, to reduce such incidences, the police departments ensures that each member of the police force obtains physical exercise. This action by the police department in 21st training for the police officers helps to protect the lives of the officers while in operations (Sorensen 10).

Mental Training

Police officers are prone to various stressors which are likely to affect their mental health. They are confronted with unpleasant environments while on their duties, and this exposes them to stress. As a result, the training in the 21st century for the police decided to include mental resilience to help in protecting the police officer against mental disorders. Several cases have been reported where police officers engage in illegal behaviours such as killing and suicidal attempts as a result of mental illness. To control such occurrences, the police departments in 21st century incorporated a mental training for the officers before they commence their duties (Thomas & Watson 98).

During the training, the police officers are taught the importance of critical thinking and rational decision making before engaging in any action. They are emphasized to evaluate the consequences or outcomes of an action before performing it to avoid regret. Also, the police officers are taught the importance of maintaining good mental health by identifying what is right and wrong. The training provides knowledge to the police officers to analyze critical situations and make sound decisions that do not violate the rights of others. Mental training is significant in educating the officers about various approaches appropriate for solving problems without harming others (Thomas & Watson 98).

Conclusion

In conclusion, the training in the 21st century for the police officers is well-structured to provide useful knowledge for the officers on various aspects important when discharging their duties. The training program enlightens the police officers about legal issues, mental requirements, physical fitness and ethical standards essential for their profession. The training in the 21st century for the police officers covers crucial aspects that the society expects the police officers to hold while serving the public. For instance, ethical training enables the officers to exercise a high level of moral standard and respect their professional code of ethics for quality services to the people.

Legal training prepares the police officers to be law-abiding public servants and execute duties in accordance to the laws outlined in the constitution. Mental preparation is essential in educating police officers about rational decision making and logical thinking to overcome illegal behaviours such as killing and suicidal attempts. Finally, the physical training of the police officers aims at boosting their physical health and fitness. Therefore, the training in the 21st century for the police officers uses these aspects to produce disciplined, dedicated, committed and competent police officers that offer quality services to the public.

Milazzo, Carl, and Ronald Hansen. "Race Relations In Police Operations: A Legal And Ethical Perspective For Officers." Journal of Police and Criminal Psychology 17.1 (2002): 84-94.

Quinet, Kenna, Samuel Nunn, and Nikki Kincaid. "Training Police: A Case Study Of Differential Impacts Of Problem-Oriented Policing Training." Police Practice and Research 4.3 (2003): 263-283.

Sorensen, L., et al. "Physical activity, fitness and body composition of Finnish police officers: a 15-year follow-up study." Occupational Medicine 50.1 (2000): 3-10.

Teller, Jennifer LS, et al. "Crisis intervention team training for police officers responding to mental disturbance calls." Psychiatric services 57.2 (2006): 232-237.

Thomas, Stuart, and Amy Watson. "A Focus For Mental Health Training For Police." Journal of Criminological Research, Policy and Practice 3.2 (2017): 93-104.