4 Qualities You Should Have As a Police Officer

A job in law enforcement calls for interacting with a wide variety of people in a variety of situations at any moment. More often than not, police officers aren’t warmly welcomed in situations because they may not like being told what to do, or may have experienced police misconduct. Unfortunately, the primary responsibility of a cop isn’t to make friends, but to enforce the law.

In order to be able to handle the emotional and physical challenges of being a police officer, you should ensure that you have all of the right skills beyond just your academy training. Here are some of the most crucial qualities that a police officer needs in order to be able to handle the job on a daily basis.

Empathy

Empathy is not the same thing as sympathy. Empathy means being able to not only understand what someone else is feeling but to feel them on a deep level as well. It calls for understanding others on a deeper level and genuinely appreciating where they’re coming from.

Empathy makes interacting with others a more positive experience between a police officer and the people they deal with every day.

Compassion

Where empathy leaves off, compassion begins. Compassion is more than just feeling for others but putting the feelings of understanding into action.

It’s essential that police officers treat the people that they deal with respectfully. Whether they’re the suspect or the victim, everyone deserves to be understood and treated as a human being. Some may argue that compassion may be the single most important quality for a police officer to have in order to carry out their duties effectively.

Adaptability

Things can change at any given moment in the day of the life of a police officer. Therefore, it’s vital to remain adaptable to be able to handle a variety of social interactions and circumstances.

Politics are ever-changing as well as social climates, so it’s essential that a police officer can handle anything that comes their way without getting shaken.

By anticipating potential challenges and overcoming them through being adaptable, they can be the most effective for their communities.

Conflict Resolution

It’s important that a police officer is there to help facilitate a resolution through observations and logical facts in order to make the best decisions. By using critical thinking skills, they can help guide conflicting parties to a solution that works for everyone. In addition, a police officer should also be ready to handle the situation if it escalates into a quarrel or physical fight. Mostly, officers might be wearing their safety gear such as body armor plates, hazmat suit, etc., to protect themselves; however, they may need to restain the offenders quickly and with minimum harm to anyone.

Part of being good at conflict resolution is being quiet and listening. By hearing all sides of an argument without bias, a police officer can help diffuse a situation rather than worsen it. Through a philosophical understanding of both sides, everyone can come out having learned something if the police officer does their job correctly.