Encyclopedia of Psychology and Law

measure. Psychologists must carry out select-in and

screen-out procedures that include evaluations of

mental health in accordance with the Americans with

Disabilities Act, and only after a conditional offer of

employment to the police applicant. Prior to condi-

tional offers, psychologists can use personality tests

and other methods that do not include evaluations of

mental health. Both conditional- and preconditional-

offer psychological evaluations, however, focus on

screening for suitable applicants.

Psychological Tests

The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory

(MMPI), the California Psychological Inventory

(CPI), and the Inwald Personality Inventory (IPI) are

the psychological tests commonly used for screening

police applicants. The MMPI and the CPI are general

self-report, paper-and-pencil, personality inventories

used to assess the relatively stable characteristics of

applicants. They tap a number of dimensions thought

to make up a police applicant’s personality, which can

affect his or her on-the-job performance. The MMPI

is a clinical instrument designed to measure dimen-

sions of deviant personality and maladaptive behavior.

It is composed of 550 true-or-false items. Above-aver-

age scale scores suggest a greater probability of hav-

ing job performance problems. Some empirical

support has linked MMPI scores with police perfor-

mance ratings and disciplinary actions such as termi-

nation and suspension from duty. Authors have

updated and restandardized the original MMPI; its

current version is the MMPI–2.

The CPI is a nonclinical instrument designed to

measure normal personality traits important for social

living and interaction. Test takers complete 480 true-

false questions. Empirical studies have found that

below-average scale scores increase the chances of

police applicants having job-related problems such as

using illegal drugs, using excessive force, and violat-

ing other department rules and procedures. The

authors of the MMPI and the author of the CPI did not

design the instruments to screen police applicants.

There are, however, police and public safety reports

available for both the MMPI and the CPI.

In contrast to the MMPI and CPI, the IPI, designed

to screen police applicants, predicts normal and

deviant police job performance patterns of test takers.

It is a self-report, paper-and-pencil questionnaire,

which consists of 310 true-or-false items developed

from more than 2,000 pre-employment interviews

with law enforcement candidates. Test scales measure

behaviors such as absenteeism, lateness, trouble with

the law, depression, suspiciousness, and anxiety.

Research has shown an association between above-

average IPI scale scores and negative behaviors by

police recruits, such as lateness, absenteeism, and

dereliction of duty during academy training.

Besides the MMPI, CPI, and IPI, psychologists have

used other psychological tests, such as the Sixteen

Personality Factor Questionnaire, Eysenck Personality

Questionnaire, Five Factor Personality Test, and Hilson

Safety/Security Risk Inventory. Psychologists usually

couple personality tests with cognitive ability tests such

as the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Test, which have

some empirical support for predicting on-the-job and

police academy performance. Some psychologists also

use projective tests that ask applicants to respond to

unstructured stimuli or situations, such as completing a

series of unfinished sentences or describing a set of

inkblots; however, the use of projective tests in the

selection of police officers has declined.

Psychological tests capture a sample of the police

applicant’s behaviors. Psychologists generally adminis-

ter multiple tests, sometimes three or four. The diagnos-

tic value of these tests is to forecast what the applicant

might say or do under police work conditions. Research

has linked personality test data from the MMPI, CPI,

and IPI with police job-related problems and success.

However, not all psychologically suitable police appli-

cants are free from job-related problems. Poor work

performance might be an artifact of attitudes and belief

systems that develop after selection. Police experience

and effects of the occupational culture might lead to

job-related problems not predicted by applicants’ psy-

chological profiles. Situational factors might interact

with personal factors to determine some inappropriate

job behaviors. In short, psychological test responses, in

part, help select in and screen out police applicants, but

applicants might lean toward making favorable impres-

sions in an effort to appear well suited for police work.

Psychological tests together with personal interviews

and situational tests round out the selection of suitable

police applicants for law enforcement training and

work.

Personal Interview

Personal interviews are a common selection compo-

nent of psychological evaluations. Psychologists use

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