Buy-in for police early intervention systems: An initial exploration of what works

Purpose

Early intervention systems (EISs) are becoming more prevalent in US law enforcement agencies. However, to date, scant empirical research has evaluated sworn members' perceptions of EISs and the degree of “buy-in” sworn members have for these systems. The current research conducts an initial exploration of how to best achieve buy-in, ultimately leading to greater acceptance of interventions by sworn members.

Methods

Using sworn personnel survey data (n = 553) from five US police departments, this research uses regression analyses to explore sworn members' buy-in for EISs as predicted by their views of their department's EIS, including their familiarity with EISs and their views on whether the system is disciplinary or wellness-oriented.

Results

Our analysis indicates that buy-in of EISs is influenced by members' familiarity with EIS and whether members believe that EIS is related to well-being (as opposed to discipline). We also find that the variables included in the model explain a substantial proportion of the variance in buy-in.

Conclusions

This research provides important insights into the concept of buy-in for EISs, primarily that other factors can modulate buy-in. We discuss these findings in light of developing policy and training to foster the success of EISs within law enforcement agencies.