Note
Research outline presented at the Summit on the Economics of Policing and Community Safety held in Ottawa, 2-4 March, 2015.
Issued also in French under the title: En une fraction de seconde : une étude préliminaire sur le recours à la force par les policiers et la formation sur le recours à la force par les policiers au Canada.
Author affiliated with: School of Criminology, Police Studies Program, Simon Fraser University.
Summary
"The high stakes nature of police use of force events and the level of scrutiny use of force attracts, places a premium on the training given to officers both at the academy and while in service. While pre-service training has evolved to teach more simplified, basic techniques, there is still a resistance on behalf of some instructors to change their systems. In-service training is increasingly relying on reality-based training to prepare officers for real-world encounters – though it may be too heavily reliant on U.S. practices. Advances in training are hindered by a lack of best practice standards, a dearth of Canadian research, and insufficient resources."