NCJ Number
177349
Date Published
1997
Length
173 pages
Annotation
This report addresses the matching of the required characteristics for policing in Australia to psychological tests that measure them.
Abstract
A national job analysis of the General Duties Constable position was undertaken to determine the critical tasks performed by entry-level police officers and the psychological characteristics needed to perform these tasks. In an effort to determine the psychological tests that could identify these psychological characteristics, 32 tests were considered for inclusion in the battery. The tests were categorized into ability and personality tests, and the merits of each test were assessed using the following criteria: coverage of required characteristics, test length, availability of appropriate norms, test reliability, test validity, and ease of administration and scoring. On the basis of these criteria, two ability tests were recommended: a nonverbal test of reasoning; Raven's Standard Progressive Matrices; and a verbal test of reasoning, one of the ACER Higher Tests. Together, these tests will provide an indication of an applicant's general cognitive ability. The selection process should also screen out problematic applicants. For this reason, the report recommends that, initially, the Sixteen Personality Factor Questionnaire be used to screen in applicants with the characteristics identified by the national job analysis and to detect any gross psychopathology in the applicant sample. 454 references