SELF CONCEPT STABILITY OF POLICE OFFICERS AS IT AFFECTS ACCURACY OF DECISIONS BASED ON A PERCEPTUAL TASK

• NCJ Number: 19895
• Author(s): C CLEARMAN
• Date Published: 1972
• Length: 98 pages
• Publication Format: Document
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

THIS STUDY COMPARED THE POST-TEST SCORES ON OBSERVATIONAL ABILITY AND SELF CONCEPT FOR TWO GROUPS OF OFFICERS: AN EXPERIMENTAL GROUP WHICH RECEIVED POSITIVE FEEDBACK ON PRE-TESTS, AND A CONTROL GROUP WHICH WAS NOT REINFORCED.

Abstract

SUBJECTS FOR THE STUDY WERE 50 POLICE OFFICERS FROM THE AUSTIN POLICE DEPARTMENT AND THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS POLICE DEPARTMENT. THE OBJECTIVES OF THIS STUDY WERE TO INVESTIGATE THE EFFECT OF FEEDBACK INFORMATION ON THE STABILITY OF THE SELF CONCEPT OF POLICE OFFICERS, AS MEASURED BY THE TENNESSEE SELF CONCEPT SCALE; TO INVESTIGATE THE EFFECT OF FEEDBACK INFORMATION ON THE ACCURACY AND STABILITY OF POLICE OFFICERS' DECISIONS, BASED ON PERCEPTUAL CUES USING VISUAL SLIDES DEPICTING CRIMINAL ACTIVITY; TO INVESTIGATE THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE STABILITY OF SELF CONCEPT AND THE ACCURACY AND STABILITY OF POLICE OFFICERS' DECISIONS ON THE OBSERVATIONAL TASK. THE STUDY INDICATED THAT THERE WAS A SIGNIFICANT CHANGE IN SELF CONCEPT SCORES FOR POLICE OFFICERS RECEIVING POSITIVE FEEDBACK. SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES WERE FOUND IN OBSERVATIONAL ABILITY BETWEEN POLICE OFFICERS WITH EXTREMELY HIGH AND EXTREMELY LOW REPORTED SELF CONCEPTS. CHANGES IN SELF CONCEPT WERE NOT FOUND TO BE SIGNIFICANTLY RELATED TO CHANGES IN OBSERVATIONAL ABILITY. (AUTHOR ABSTRACT MODIFIED)