Course Details

Course Title2022 IACP - Preemployment Evaluations: Considering Racial Bias and Common Impediments to Optimal Selection
Date 10/16/2022
ProviderIACP - PPSS
Phone800-843-4227
EmailAnnualConference@theIACP.org
Website https://www.theiacpconference.org/
LocationDallas
Credit Hours1.5
Instructor(s)Zelig, Detrick, Sperbeck, Craig
Method of InstructionWorkshop/Seminar
Approving AgencyAPA
Course Syllabus

Course Description

We will discuss three impediments that prevent police psychologists from identifying the most suitable applicants for police service. First, testing to identify applicants prone to implicit and explicit bias may be improved by including measures of the psychological trait Agreeableness and considering situation-behavior relationships. Second, failing to use tests that screen for concentration and attention skills leads to major performance problems (e,g., minor fender benders, poor report writing, inability to efficiently track radio traffic). Third, psychologists perform best when there are more applicants than positions. If nearly everyone is hired, even the most valid tests will not improve hiring decisions because meaningful differentiations between applicants cannot be made.

Course Objectives