Police Professional Liability: Conflict Management Tips

Police-citizen interactions can have a lasting impression. Police officers are not only performing their individual job duties, they are representatives of the entire law force community. How they conduct themselves in the daily runnings of their occupation matters.

Police are regularly called upon to deal with various sources of conflict. From mediating domestic disputes, restoring order in a pub brawl to assisting others in need, managing conflict is a key job requirement for law enforcement officers. Here are some conflict management tips to follow:

Listen patiently at first. The first responders on a call may be bombarded with the story. Simply listen. Don’t try to dissuade, argue or put your opinion in until you have the full story.

Watch your body language. Nonverbal behaviors can have powerful influences in interpersonal communication. Sometimes it is the little things that make the difference. Maintaining eye contact and an attentive body posture shows you are focused, interested and engaged in what is going on. People will respond better and are more likely to cooperate if they feel they are being heard.

Don’t get agitated. It is easy to respond to cursing or yelling with equal force. But hold back. Paralanguage is the message we send not with our words, but by the tone, pitch and inflection in our voice. Making a note to moderate your tone and the pace of your speech can help you stay calm and in the end resolve the situation so it has a more productive outcome.

At Professional Governmental Underwriters, our Police Professional liability program is uniquely designed for law enforcement officers. Our program is designed for city, borough, village, township and county police and sheriff departments serving populations less than 100,000. For more information, please contact us today about our Police Professional Liability programs – 804-272-6557