Establishing effective communication with members of the public is one of the most popular objectives of any organization. Following recent altercations between the police and the citizens of Dallas, this issue has become even more topical. The policy proposed here would ensure that all police officers go through mandatory ongoing training implemented by in-house specialists. The result of this policy is establishing better communications with members of the public and colleagues.
The agency to implement this policy is the Dallas Police Department. According to the official report, in January 2020 the Dallas Police Department received 82 complaints from the public, among which six were due to the discourtesy or unprofessionalism expressed by law enforcement officers, two cases were connected to racial profiling, and two – to the use of force (Shinneman, 2020, para. 7). Following the onset of the demonstrations related to George Floyd’s incident, the Dallas Police Department released a report that its officers struggled to communicate with the public and act as a unified force (The Associated Press, 2020). This account highlights the need for reorganization and restructuring within the department and the need for more effective policies.
The proposed strategy’s importance can be explained by the urgent need for qualitative improvement of how police officers act and are perceived by the public. However, providing policy staff with short-term professional courses in effective communication seems less effective than introducing a mandatory ongoing training program implemented by in-house experts. They are supposed to develop department-personalized teaching plans. This will allow them to make this training more effective and customized, as it also provides an opportunity to follow the trainees’ progress and make changes to the curriculum on the go. The constant character of trainers’ employment has a significant potential to improve police officers’ communication skills more successfully.
In practice, this strategy would involve several stages, starting with hiring a team of communications and behavior specialists. Then the newly appointed team would carry out a needs assessment, both by analyzing the existing volume of complaints and reports and doing research on particular self-assessed problem areas for police officers representing different departments. This attitude would allow not only to determine how officers view their communications skills but also to demonstrate respect for their opinions and needs (Woods, 2000, p. 43). Finally, the training program would be developed and implemented ongoingly, addressing particular objectives, and tackling challenges as they arrive.
Building a relationship between the community and law enforcement will likely prevent numerous crimes. It would allow the department’s image to improve and enable police officers to communicate with the public more effectively. Moreover, it is especially vital for the success of various community outreach programs that the Dallas Police Department participates in.
References
Shinneman, S. (2020). What a month of complaints against Dallas PD looks like. D Magazine.
The Associated Press. (2020). Dallas police plan changes after examining protest response. NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth.
Woods, M.J. (2000). Interpersonal communication for police officers: Using needs assessment to prepare for sceptical trainees. Business and Professional Communication Quarterly, 63(4).