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Experience-Dependent Effects to Situational Awareness in Police Officers: An Eye Tracking Study

Author

Listed:
  • Juha-Matti Huhta

    (Police University College of Finland, 33721 Tampere, Finland
    Faculty of Education and Culture, Tampere University, 33720 Tampere, Finland)

  • Paula M. Di Nota

    (Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Mississauga, Mississauga, ON L5L 1C6, Canada)

  • Veikko Surakka

    (Faculty of Information Technology and Communication Sciences, Tampere University, 33720 Tampere, Finland)

  • Poika Isokoski

    (Faculty of Information Technology and Communication Sciences, Tampere University, 33720 Tampere, Finland)

  • Eero Ropo

    (Faculty of Education and Culture, Tampere University, 33720 Tampere, Finland)

Abstract

Police work requires making suitable observations which form the basis of situational awareness (SA) of the encounter in progress. Incomplete early-stage SA (i.e., perception) can lead to errors in subsequent judgement and decision-making that can have severe consequences for performance, learning, and occupational health. SA in police contexts is still relatively understudied and requires closer examination using objective measures. The current preliminary study aimed to measure the gaze and fixation patterns among novice and expert police officers to understand early-stage SA at different levels of professional experience. Participants included 23 novices (10 early, 13 intermediate) and 11 experienced officers and instructors in tactics and use of force. Visit duration and fixation order were measured while participants viewed various static images of staged encounters. Results showed that all participants fixated longer on targets compared to the periphery, and fixated earlier on suspects’ faces compared to hands, bodies, or the environment. Further, experts fixated earlier on hands and spent less time scanning the environment than early novices. The current findings reveal eye movement patterns while officers engaged in typical police encounters. Future research can inform evidence-based police training to achieve optimal SA and minimize negative outcomes in training and operational field settings.

Suggested Citation

  • Juha-Matti Huhta & Paula M. Di Nota & Veikko Surakka & Poika Isokoski & Eero Ropo, 2022. "Experience-Dependent Effects to Situational Awareness in Police Officers: An Eye Tracking Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(9), pages 1-12, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:19:y:2022:i:9:p:5047-:d:798605
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Paula M. Di Nota & Jennifer F. Chan & Juha-Matti Huhta & Judith P. Andersen, 2021. "Considering Objective and Subjective Measures for Police Use of Force Evaluation," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(10), pages 1-12, May.
    2. Robyn E. Shields & Stephanie Korol & R. Nicholas Carleton & Megan McElheran & Andrea M. Stelnicki & Dianne Groll & Gregory S. Anderson, 2021. "Brief Mental Health Disorder Screening Questionnaires and Use with Public Safety Personnel: A Review," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(7), pages 1-30, April.
    3. Judith P. Andersen & Harri Gustafsberg, 2016. "A Training Method to Improve Police Use of Force Decision Making," SAGE Open, , vol. 6(2), pages 21582440166, April.
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    Cited by:

    1. Christoph Engel & Rima-Maria Rahal, 2022. "Eye-Tracking as a Method for Legal Research," Discussion Paper Series of the Max Planck Institute for Research on Collective Goods 2022_07, Max Planck Institute for Research on Collective Goods.

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