The After-Action Review (AAR) in Virtual Reality (VR) training for police provides new opportunities to enhance learning. We investigated whether perspectives (bird’s eye & police officer, bird’s eye & suspect, bird’s eye) and line of fire displayed in the AAR impacted the officers’ learning efficacy. A 3 x 2 ANOVA revealed a significant main effect of AAR perspectives. Post hoc pairwise comparisons showed that using a bird’s eye view in combination with the suspect perspective elicits significantly greater learning efficacy compared to using a bird’s eye view alone. Using the line of fire feature did not influence learning efficacy. Our findings show that the use of the suspect perspective during the AAR in VR training can support the learning efficacy of police officers.Practitioner summary: VR systems possess After-Action Review tools that provide objective performance feedback. This study found that reviewing a VR police training scenario from the bird’s eye view in combination with the suspect perspective enhanced police officers’ learning efficacy. Designing and applying the After-Action Review effectively can improve learning efficacy in VR.
In policing, Virtual Reality scenario-based training (VR SBT) is being explored to complement real-life scenario-based training (RL SBT). We investigated whether relevant training responses in VR SBT, namely heart rate (HR), level of physical activity, mental effort, and perceived stress, resemble those in RL SBT. Utilizing a within-subject study design, we investigated the training responses of 237 police officers of the Dutch National Police. We found that the maximum HR and average level of physical activity were significantly higher in RL SBT, whereas invested mental effort was significantly higher in VR SBT. No significant differences were found in average HR and perceived stress. We also found that perceived stress in VR was predicted by participants’ VR experiences such as engagement with VR and experience of negative effects, but not by participant characteristics. Participants’ mental effort in VR was predicted by their VR experiences and participant characteristics, particularly gaming frequency. In conclusion, VR SBT can elicit perceived stress, mental effort, and average HR that resemble or exceed responses in RL SBT, providing a promising tool to complement police training.
Purpose: Facing the COVID-19 pandemic, police officers are confronted with various novel challenges, which might place additional strain on officers. This mixed-method study investigated officers' strain over a three-month-period after the lockdown. Methods: In an online survey, 2567 police officers (77% male) from Austria, Germany, Switzerland, the Netherlands, and Spain participated at three measurement points per country in spring, 2020. Three-level growth curve models assessed changes in strain and its relation to stressor appraisal, emotion regulation, and preparedness through training. To add context to the findings, free response answers about officers' main tasks, stressors, and crisis measures were coded inductively. Results: On average, officers seemed to tolerate the pandemic with slight decreases in strain over time. Despite substantial variance between countries, 66% of the variance occurred between individuals. Sex, work experience, stressor appraisal, emotion regulation, and preparedness significantly predicted strain. Risk of infection and deficient communication emerged as main stressors. Officers' reports allowed to derive implications for governmental, organizational, and individual coping strategies during pandemics. Conclusion: Preparing for a pandemic requires three primary paths: 1) enacting unambiguous laws and increasing public compliance through media communication, 2) being logistically prepared, and 3) improving stress regulation skills in police training.
