The Impacts of Statewide De-escalation and Peer Intervention Training on Officer Attitudes, Perceptions, and Skill Use

• In Event: Examining Police Reforms in New Jersey: Findings from a Multimethod, Multiyear Evaluation

Abstract

Measures to enhance police accountability and reduce coercive police-citizen contacts have gained widespread momentum in policing. De-escalation and peer intervention training are common amongst these measures, often implemented with little scientific evidence of their direct impacts on police attitudes and behaviors. This paper will present findings from officers’ responses to training surveys immediately before, after, and one to two years after their participation in mandated de-escalation and peer intervention training. The high response rates to the surveys—ranging from 12,623 to 17,036 responses at pre- and post-training—offer insights representative of law enforcement officers across New Jersey. Implications for the field based on the impact of these training programs on officer attitudes, perceptions, and skill use, along with variation across jurisdictions and regions in the state, will be discussed.

Authors

• Hannah McManus, National Policing Institute

• Ryan T. Motz, University of Cincinnati

• Gabrielle Isaza, National Policing Institute