Can You Imagine This?

As research continues to prove, there are numerous safety risks associated with working in the field of law enforcement. Officer safety issues can contribute to the stress placed on officers working in law enforcement positions. Providing officers with techniques and tools to assist with the reduction of occupational stress can improve their overall mental and physical health.

Visualization exercises can be used to reduce stress by preparing law enforcement officers for potentially traumatic events. Visualization exercises can be used in scenario based training offering different options on how law enforcement officers can handle dangerous situations they may encounter. Like visualization, mental imagery training is used to help athletes enhance their skills, decrease anxiety, and reach optimum performance goals.

Initial Post: Research information on safety issues that law enforcement officers may face in their work. What are some of the main safety issues that have the potential to cause law enforcement officers stress? How might using visualization help to reduce stress and build confidence in officers doing a difficult and risky job? Should law enforcement agencies implement the use of visualization in their training curriculums? Provide specific examples in your response.

In your initial post, you will be required to cite a minimum of one professional source of information.

Response Post: When responding to other students, consider the safety issues that they identified in their initial post. Were these similar to what you found? Did anything surprise you? Offer some feedback regarding their thoughts on the usefulness of visualization exercises.

Due dates for your initial and response posts can be found by checking the Course Syllabus and Course Calendar.