Police selection and career assessment

About this book

This report details the research activities and validation efforts undertaken in the development of the two personnel evaluation inventories designed during this project, and outlines the instruments' operational uses. The major objective of this research program was to develop new methods for evaluating persons who apply for positions in police work and for assessing the potential of present police officers being considered for promotion. In order to accomplish this, critical features of four different police jobs were determined. These jobs were general patrol officer, investigator/detective, patrol sergeant, and intermediate command. The means by which these critical features and other information such as job performance ratings were utilized to develop and validate two personnel evaluation instruments are described in detail. The first evaluation instrument developed, which came to be called the police career index, consists of a brief, easily administered and objectively scored inventory to be used in preliminary screening of applicants and candidates for police jobs. The second procedure, the regional assessment center, consists of a series of police job simulation exercises designed to elicit behavioral indicators of a person's potential for success in various aspects of police work. Procedures for utilizing these instruments are outlined. Appendixes to this report include job performance description booklets for the four police positions, and tables showing reliability estimates for job performance ratings.