Enhancing Safety and Performance in Law Enforcement

For law enforcement personnel, ergonomics mainly involves minimizing the potential risk of physical injuries as well as the psychological trauma a serviceman can suffer in the line of duty. A job is likely to result in injury when there are several risk factors to be considered, which is undoubtedly the case for anyone involved in law enforcement (Czarnecki and others 11). It is a priority to alleviate these concerns for policemen as they endeavor to keep us safe. 

This paper will analyze how enhancing officer's physical and mental skills in a combat situation are crucial to improving their overall performance. There is a multitude of changes taking place in a policeman’s body during extreme physical stress. Combat anxiety may affect an officer just before a physical confrontation. In extreme situations such as when dealing with a terrorist or an indiscriminate mass shooter, survival stress may kick in. Such scenarios often activate the sympathetic nervous system (SNS). It triggers several adverse bodily reactions such as tunnel vision, auditory exclusion, and selective attention. A serviceman must be trained appropriately to handle this knee jerk response to standing a chance during a combat situation. 

Repetitive training in gross motor skills will facilitate an improvement in handling SNS reactions. They are basic strength abilities or techniques involving coordinated bodily movements. Sadly, they are not engrained in basic police training programs despite their apparent advantages to law enforcement personnel. In essence, it improves their physical performance in the field, it reduces the effects of a return to the functioning of the parasympathetic nervous system or normalcy, and it reduces the mental impact of critical incident amnesia that may occur after a significant physical engagement. 

Works Cited

Czarnecki, Fabrice, and Ira Janowitz. "Ergonomics and safety in law enforcement." Clinics in Occupational and Environmental Medicine 3 (2003): 399-418. 

Staller, Mario S., and Benjamin Zaiser. "Developing problem solvers: New perspectives on pedagogical practices in police use of force training." The Journal of Law Enforcement 4.3 (2015): 1-15.