Enhancing Law Enforcement Skills: A 2-Year Report on Level 3 De-Escalation Training From the National De-Escalation Training Center

Police officers must approach volatile situations that may escalate on a frequent basis. As first responders, they often do not have the luxury of ignoring conflict in public and must work to resolve the situation. However, officers’ presence may inadvertently escalate situations, leading to coerciv...

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Bibliographic Details
Authors: Steele, Morgan (Author) ; Lynn, Tamara J. (Author) ; Hayes, Abigail A. (Author) ; Augustine, Laurelle (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
Published: 2025
In: Criminal justice and behavior
Year: 2025, Volume: 52, Issue: 12, Pages: 1849-1872
Online Access: Presumably Free Access
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Keywords:
Police Reform
De-escalation
police use-of-force
Training
Description
Summary:Police officers must approach volatile situations that may escalate on a frequent basis. As first responders, they often do not have the luxury of ignoring conflict in public and must work to resolve the situation. However, officers’ presence may inadvertently escalate situations, leading to coercive responses, injury, or worse. The National De-Escalation Training Center (NDTC) has received USD4.75 million dollars to provide de-escalation training that incorporates rapid personality assessment, mental health issue recognition, and situational awareness built on a procedural justice foundation. Using data from the first 2 years of trainings conducted across the United States, we have found that NDTC training dramatically improves officers’ ability to recognize levels of escalation, tailor their response to the individuals’ personality types, and respond effectively. This has significant implications for de-escalation training of police as well as the larger debate surrounding law enforcement in the United States.
ISSN:1552-3594
DOI:10.1177/00938548251353749