Law Enforcement/First Responder Psychological Evaluations

Psychological testing is one component in the process of selecting entry-level first responders (law enforcement officers and firefighters). Because these are high-risk, high-stress positions, state and federal governments use psychological evaluations to help support employment selection decisions and fitness-for-duty evaluations, which can help provide insight into the likely attitudes and behaviors of job candidates. These evaluations also assess the emotional stability and mental health of applicants, determining whether they have risk-prone personality traits, or possible psychopathology. Basic entry-level psychological suitability standards provide a framework for identifying psychological factors that affect job performance or those that could interfere with successful performance.
Diagnostic and screening decisions should never be based exclusively on the results of one test, but based rather on multiple sources of information, which may include but is not limited to: (a) various applicant self-report instruments; (b) the results of the clinical interview; and (c) the results of the cognitive ability test.
The benefits to the department of psychological testing for first responders are:

• Best applicants are chosen based on multiple sources of information
• Increased accuracy of selection
• Reduction of cost for employee turnover