NCJ Number
114676
Date Published
1989
Length
10 pages
Annotation
A national survey of field training programs in police departments formed the basis of an analysis of the use, characteristics, and impacts of these programs.
Abstract
A survey questionnaire sent to 588 randomly selected State and Local agencies received responses from 288 agencies. The questionnaire used 33 multiple-choice questions to gather information about several aspects of the programs. Site visits gathered further information about the programs in San Jose, Calif., Newport News, Va., Flagstaff, Ariz., and Largo, Fla. Results showed the use of field training to be increasing. Sixty-four percent of the respondents have a program, and most programs are less than 10 years old. The agencies that do not use field training programs usually provide on-the-job training with senior officers, sometimes in conjunction with added classroom instruction. Common characteristics of field training programs are their division into identifiable phases, the special selection and training of trainers, the use of standardized training and evaluation techniques, regular evaluation by field training officers, and the use of programs to continue the personnel selection process. Respondents suggested that programs could be enhanced by upgrading the quality of field training officers, mainly through improved selection, training, and compensation. Findings indicated the desirability of using field training programs as part of the recruit selection process, of assigning each recruit to several field training officers, of providing recruits with daily written evaluations, and of using standardized evaluation guidelines. 6 references.