Suicide intervention training with law enforcement officers.

Law Enforcement Officers' (LEO) interactions with people facing mental health crises have risen exponentially since the era of deinstitutionalization. On average, about 10% of the individuals law enforcement interacts with daily have mental health challenges. Several factors influence the outcome of these interactions, not least of which is an officer's role as a gatekeeper as well as their training related to people with mental health challenges. We hypothesized that participating in the online QPR Training for Law Enforcement Officers would be associated with improved knowledge about suicide, attitudes to suicide and suicide intervention, and self-efficacy. Additionally, we hypothesized that these outcomes would be associated with greater use of intervention skills when encountering individuals at risk for suicide in the community. Results of our longitudinal analysis find that most of the participating officers reported some prior training and yet demonstrated statistically significant improvements in knowledge and attitudes after controlling for previous training. No significant changes were observed in LEO's use of intervention skills following training. We conclude by suggesting that there is substantial need for increased training; and offering possible conceptual and empirical explanations for the observed results.

Modeling the Longitudinal Direct and Indirect Effects of Attitudes, Self-Efficacy, and Behavioral Intentions on Practice Behavior Outcomes of Suicide Intervention Training.

The purpose of this study was to use a longitudinal path analysis to test attitudes toward suicide prevention, self-efficacy, and behavioral intentions as mediators/moderators of clinical skill development over time following suicide intervention training. Results support a direct effect of attitudes on practice behaviors and self-efficacy, but no moderating effect. Self-efficacy performed as a mediator of practice behaviors over time. Behavioral intention had a direct effect on practice behaviors and mediated the relationship between attitudes and practice behaviors. Implications for research and practice are discussed.