Helping Police and Citizen Relations through Interpersonal Interaction and Oral Communication Training for Officers

Police and citizen relations have been and continue to be a big part of policing in society. Police officers attend a police academy where they receive training on laws, training on how to use tools, and tactics on handling irate and upset individuals. After graduating from the police academy, police officers are required to attend training that provides them information on how to deal with people in a crisis. Officers are only required to attend this training once. The Texas Commission on Law Enforcement (TCOLE) does not currently require any training for law enforcement officers that teaches them how to speak and communicate with citizens daily, or build relationships with citizens who are not in a state of crisis. Law Enforcement agencies should be providing continuous interpersonal interaction and oral communication training to officers in an effort to build better relations with citizens and communities. These trainings will be in an effort to provide officers with the skills needed to communicate with the public and improve relations with the citizens. By providing these trainings frequently, this will help officers retain the information and learn the skills needed to improve and strengthen citizen relations. With strong and better citizens’ relations, the skills learned will help deescalate situations and reduce the use of force situations officers encounter daily.