Trainer's Bullpen

SummaryIn this conversation, Chris Butler and Lon Bartel discuss the critical intersection of human performance research and law enforcement training. They explore the importance of understanding the time it takes for officers to stop shooting in high-stress situations. The conversation includes the critical human factors involved in the stop-shooting process. Bartel shares insights from his research, highlighting the need for training methodologies and analysis of officer involved use of force events to evolve based on empirical findings. The discussion emphasizes the necessity of bridging the gap between academic research and practical application in law enforcement, ultimately aiming to enhance officer safety and public trust.Takeaways• Understanding the time it takes to stop a shooting response is crucial for ensuring fair and neutral investigations take place.• The psychological refractory period affects decision-making in high-stress situations and can slow down decision making.• The ‘Flankers Effect' demonstrates how attention can be diverted in critical moments when important decisions need to be made.• Training methodologies in law enforcement need to evolve based on research findings.• Real-world conditions differ significantly from controlled lab settings. Lab research is helpful but should not be transferred directly to operational incident analysis.• The study found an average of two additional shots fired after a stop signal.• Future research should focus on realistic threat scenarios for better training outcomes.For more information about the research or the amazing technology and research by Virtra, contact Lon Bartel at lbartel@virtra.com

SummaryIn this episode of the Trainers Bullpen, Chris Butler interviews Brian Moon, a leading expert in naturalistic decision making (NDM). They discuss the importance of NDM in law enforcement, the role of experience and intuition in decision making, and the challenges experts face in articulating their decisions. Brian shares insights from his journey in the field, emphasizing the need for cognitive task analysis to bridge the gap between implicit knowledge and explicit articulation, ultimately enhancing training and decision-making processes in high-stakes environments. In this conversation, Brian discusses the importance of expertise management and cognitive task analysis in training, particularly within law enforcement. He emphasizes the need to capture the knowledge of experienced professionals before they leave organizations and how structured conversations can elicit valuable insights. The discussion also covers the integration of these insights into training scenarios and decision-making games to enhance learning and performance.TakeawaysNaturalistic decision making (NDM) is essential for effective law enforcement.Experience plays a critical role in decision making, but does not guarantee infallibility.Cognitive task analysis can help articulate implicit knowledge in decision making.Experts often struggle to articulate their decision-making processes after high-pressure situations.Recognition of familiar cues is key in naturalistic decision making.Training should focus on learning from experiences rather than the school of hard knocks.Anticipation of outcomes is crucial in decision-making processes.Expertise is developed through experience and reflection on past decisions.Designing systems that support cognitive work is vital for effective decision making. Expertise management focuses on retaining knowledge from senior professionals.Cognitive task analysis helps in understanding decision-making processes.Story elicitation techniques can capture valuable experiences from experts.Training should incorporate real-world scenarios to enhance learning.Decision games allow for experiential learning and skill development.Mentorship plays a crucial role in knowledge transfer.Imagination can create high-fidelity training experiences.Understanding context is vital in decision-making.Facilitated conversations can uncover deeper insights.Organizations must prioritize capturing expertise before it walks out the door.For more information about Brian Moon, Cognitive Task Analysis and Naturalistic Decision Making training opportunities as well as other educational resources, check out Perigean at https://perigeantechnologies.com/

Summary: In this episode of the Trainers Bullpen, host Chris Butler welcomes Professor Mark Williams, a leading expert in perceptual cognitive expertise and performance. They discuss the intersection of academic research and law enforcement training, focusing on the most pervasive ‘myths' surrounding learning and performance. Key topics include the debunking of the 10,000 hour rule, the importance of deliberate practice, the transferability of skills, and the nuanced relationship between pressure, stress, and performance. The conversation emphasizes the need for evidence-based approaches in training to enhance officer and public safety. In this conversation, Mark explores the intricate relationship between stress, performance, and training in high-pressure environments, particularly in law enforcement. They discuss how anxiety affects information processing and decision-making, the importance of experience in managing stress, and the need for training specificity to enhance resilience and self-efficacy. The dialogue emphasizes the distinction between performance and learning, highlighting that good performance in practice does not mean that learning has occurred, nor does it equate to the desired behavior in the real world. The conversation concludes with insights on the balance of pressure in training and the significance of specificity over repetition.Takeaways:• The 10,000 hour rule is a misinterpretation of research.• Deliberate practice is essential for developing expertise.• Mistakes in training are a critical component and pathway for growth.• Pressure can enhance performance if managed correctly. Finding the right pressure balance is essential for learning.• Specificity in training environments is crucial for effectiveness.• Practice should be designed to challenge weaknesses by creating pressure at those points.• Anxiety can improve focus and performance, but only up to a point.• A growth mindset fosters continuous improvement in performance. Stress alters our cognitive processing abilities.• Anxiety can disrupt previously automated behaviors.• Self-efficacy plays a crucial role in managing pressure.• Training environments must reflect real-world scenarios.• Performance in practice does not always indicate learning.• Specificity in training is more beneficial than mere repetition.• Psychological resilience can be developed through exposure to stressors.• Excellent coaching requires a skillful blend of both art and science.

Summary In this episode of the Trainer's Bullpen, host Chris Butler speaks with Dr. Glenn Landry, a sleep expert with over 25 years of experience in circadian rhythms and sleep health. They discuss the critical importance of sleep for law enforcement officers, particularly those who work shifts. Dr. Landry shares his personal journey into sleep science, the impact of sleep on cognitive health, and how sleep deprivation can affect decision-making and emotional regulation. He emphasizes the need for tailored sleep interventions to improve the health and performance of officers, highlighting the relationship between sleep, learning, and overall well-being. In this conversation, Dr. Glenn J Landry discusses the critical importance of sleep for first responders, emphasizing the detrimental effects of sleep deprivation on emotional regulation and resilience. He highlights the role of naps in restoring cognitive function and managing sleep debt, while also addressing the use of caffeine and sleep supplements and their potential drawbacks. The discussion extends to the impact of light exposure on sleep quality and the significance of creating an optimal sleep environment. Dr. Landry also explains the importance of understanding circadian rhythms and how they relate to exercise timing, particularly for shift workers. Takeaways: • Circadian rhythms play a crucial role in sleep quality and cognitive function. • Sleep deprivation leads to significant cognitive decline and health issues. • Shift work can disrupt circadian rhythms, but strategies exist to mitigate this. • The brain accumulates toxicity when sleep is insufficient, impacting overall health. • Elite sleep is essential for optimal cognitive performance and health. • Light sleep is important for processing daily information and skill acquisition. • REM sleep enhances creative problem-solving and emotional regulation. • Understanding sleep's impact is vital for improving law enforcement training and performance. Sleep deprivation leads to moodiness and irrational behavior. • First responders face unique sleep challenges due to trauma exposure. • Napping is essential for emotional regulation and resilience. • Caffeine can fragment sleep architecture if consumed too late. • Light exposure can significantly impact sleep quality. • Creating a dark and quiet sleep environment is crucial. For more information about Dr. Landry's “Surviving Shift Work” online training program for first responders, go to NEOS Performance at www.neosperformance.com

Summary: In this episode of the Trainer's Bullpen, host Chris Butler interviews Dr. Jeremy Butler, a kinesiology instructor and martial arts expert, about the intersection of martial arts training and law enforcement. They discuss Dr. Butler's background, the impact of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu on police officer confidence and performance, and the findings of his research study on the perceptions of officers who train in BJJ. The conversation highlights the importance of martial arts in enhancing officer safety, decision-making, and physical fitness, as well as the transferability of skills learned in BJJ to real-world encounters. In this conversation, Dr. Jeremy Butler discusses the significance of self-efficacy in law enforcement training, particularly in the context of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ). He emphasizes the importance of contextual and realistic training environments that enhance officers' confidence and performance. The discussion also covers the integration of ecological dynamics in control tactics training, the necessity of teamwork and communication in high-pressure situations, and the overall goal of minimizing harm during use of force encounters. Takeaways: • Martial arts training can significantly improve officer confidence and performance. • Over 90% of officers reported improvements in fitness and confidence from BJJ. • Self-defense and fitness are primary motivations for officers to train in martial arts. • The study revealed a positive correlation between training time and officer confidence. • Control techniques in BJJ are highly applicable to law enforcement encounters. • Experience in use of force encounters increases officer self-efficacy. • Transferability of BJJ skills to real-world situations is crucial for officer safety. • A well-rounded skill set in martial arts enhances overall effectiveness in law enforcement. Self-efficacy is crucial for police performance. • Exposure to violence can enhance training outcomes. • Training must be highly contextual and should simulate real-life scenarios. • BJJ training can improve officer confidence. • Teamwork training is essential for transfer to high-pressure combative situations where multiple officers are present. • Understanding principles is key to effective control tactics. • Ecological dynamics can bridge technique and adaptability.

Summary: In this episode of the Trainer's Bullpen, host Chris Butler engages with Scott Sievewright, a leading figure in the field of skill acquisition and coaching in martial arts. They discuss the ecological dynamics approach to training, contrasting it with traditional information processing methods. Scott shares his journey from a conventional coaching background to embracing a technique-less, principles-based training philosophy. The conversation delves into the importance of guiding athletes' intentions and attention, the concept of representative learning design, and the challenges of managing diverse skill levels in training environments. They also explore the constraints-led approach, emphasizing how coaches can manipulate various constraints to optimize learning and performance in athletes. In this conversation, Scott also explores the principles of ecological dynamics and the constraints-led approach in coaching, particularly in martial arts and law enforcement training. They discuss the importance of understanding constraints, the concept of affordances, and how individual perception affects training outcomes. The conversation emphasizes the need for authentic movement, balancing safety with realism in training, and the significance of representative design even in warm-ups. Scott shares insights on creating a culture of care in training environments and the necessity of adapting training to individual capabilities. Takeaways: • Traditional coaching often relies on a prescriptive, technique-based model. • Ecological dynamics emphasizes the interaction between organisms and their environment. • Guiding intention and attention is crucial for effective coaching. • Training should start with representative learning designs from day one. • Managing diverse skill levels in training requires a generalist approach. • The constraints-led approach is synonymous with effective coaching. • Coaches can manipulate constraints to elicit desired behaviors in athletes. • Understanding the challenge point is essential for optimal learning outcomes. Coaching has always been constraint-based. • Understanding constraints can elevate coaching effectiveness. • Affordances are opportunities for action in the environment. • Authentic movement reflects the personality of the athlete. • Safety in training must balance realism and injury prevention. • Representative design should be integrated into warm-ups. • Self-organization allows the body to adapt to tasks naturally. • Game intelligence is crucial for quick decision-making in combat. • Cultivating perception-action relationships is essential for skill development. • Creating a supportive training culture enhances learning and safety. For more great info visit Scott's podcast at 'The Primal MMA Coaching Podcast'

Summary: In this conversation, Chris Butler and Dr. Nick Winkelman, author of 'The Language of Coaching: The Art and Science of Teaching Movement', explore the intersection of coaching language and motor learning, particularly in the context of law enforcement training. They discuss the importance of effective communication in coaching, the impact of language on performance, and the balance between internal and external cues. Winkelman shares his journey in coaching and the development of the Coaching Communication Loop, emphasizing the need for flexibility in coaching approaches. The discussion also highlights the significance of allowing learners to experience struggle and mistakes as part of the learning process. In this conversation, Winkelman discusses the intricacies of coaching and learning, emphasizing the importance of understanding an athlete's learning capacity and mood. He explores the role of coaches in motivating learners, setting clear expectations, and providing engaging feedback. The discussion also highlights the significance of language in performance and the balance between internal and external focus for optimal learning and execution. Takeaways: • Nick Winkelman emphasizes the importance of language in coaching and motor learning. • Effective coaching requires understanding the intersection of what a coach says and what an athlete hears. • Learning is defined as the ability to express a change without reminders or prompts. • Analogies and external cues enhance learning and performance in movement skills. • The Coaching Communication Loop consists of describe, demonstrate, cue, do, and debrief. • Internal cues focus on body mechanics, while external cues focus on outcomes. • Allowing learners to struggle is essential for developing skills and understanding. • Feedback and cues are crucial for improving performance and ensuring safety. • Flexibility in coaching approaches is necessary to meet individual learner needs. Learning capacity can plateau, requiring new cues. • Athletes have different learning moods that affect performance. • Coaches can create conditions to lower barriers to learning. • Clear expectations reduce anxiety and improve focus. • Positive reinforcement enhances learning retention. • Language used in coaching impacts athlete's mindset. • Internal cues can hinder performance by overthinking. • External cues enhance reaction time and performance. • Celebrating successes reinforces positive learning experiences. • Effective coaching involves guiding rather than dictating. For further information to enhance your understanding of the concepts talked about during this podcast, please visit Nick's “The Language of Coaching' YouTube page https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qHhoYw3yIsw&list=PLjcHdvjMxsv5a5Za57ciJBopVUeoXul4P

Summary In this episode of the Trainers Bullpen, host Chris Butler interviews Dr. William Bozeman, a leading expert in law enforcement use of force and injury epidemiology. They discuss the findings of Dr. Bozeman's research on police use of force, particularly focusing on Taser use and Vascular Neck Restraint (VNR). The conversation highlights the importance of understanding the actual rates of injury associated with various use of force modalities, the methodology behind the research, and the implications for law enforcement training and public safety. Dr. Bozeman emphasizes the need for evidence-based practices in policing and the significance of high-quality research in shaping policies and training programs. The research strongly contradicts the popular narrative that police use of force is climbing or ‘out of control'. Takeaways • Dr. Bozeman's research focuses on injury epidemiology related to police use of force. • Taser use has been shown to rarely cause significant injuries. • 98% of subjects involved in use of force incidents had no or mild injuries. • Vascular Neck Restraint (VNR) has a remarkably high success rate with no fatalities in the study. • Police do not use force very often, with less than 1% of interactions resulting in force. • High-quality research is essential for informing law enforcement policies and training. • Courageous conversations about the effectiveness and necessity of certain tools, like batons, are needed as agencies continue to modernize their policing practices.

Dr. Hunter Martaindale is the Director of Research at the Advanced Law Enforcement Rapid Response Training (ALERRT) Center at Texas State University and an Associate Research Professor within the School of Criminal Justice and Criminology. In this role, he oversees all research activities for ALERRT, including analyzing active shooter events, conducting active shooter training program evaluations through experimental design, and testing methods/interventions to improve law enforcement decision-making and overall performance. Beyond that, Hunter actively supports other researchers with applied policing projects in an effort to get actionable results to practitioners. In this podcast, Dr. Martindale discusses his research on virtual reality (VR) training in law enforcement. The purpose of the study was to determine if VR training scenarios can elicit a similar stress response as realistic scenario-based training. The study involved two phases: a scenario-based training phase and a VR training phase. Participants went through a high-fidelity scenario involving professional actors and simulated injuries. The same scenario was then recreated in VR. Salivary measures of stress were collected before and after each training phase. The results showed that VR training was able to elicit  similar physiological stress responses as realistic scenario-based, or high-fidelity training. VR can be a valuable tool for law enforcement agencies and trainers to replicate real-life scenarios and ensure consistent training for all officers. However, VR should not replace in-person training entirely and should be used as a supplement. VR technology has improved significantly, and agencies should actively investigate and incorporate VR into their training programs.   Takeaways Virtual reality (VR) training has the potential to bridge the gap between law enforcement training and academic research. VR training can supplement in-person training and help retain skills that may not come up in an officer's day-to-day job. Measuring heart rate alone is not a reliable indicator of stress response; other measures, such as salivary markers, can provide more accurate results. High-fidelity scenarios with professional actors can enhance the realism of training and elicit a stronger stress response. The study found that VR training was able to elicit a similar stress response as realistic scenario-based training. VR training elicited similar physiological stress responses as high-fidelity scenario-based training. VR can be a valuable tool for law enforcement agencies and trainers to replicate real-life scenarios and ensure consistent training. VR should be used as a supplement to in-person training and not as a replacement. Future research should focus on the long-term effects of VR training on skill development and retention. The technology has improved significantly, with better refresh rates and reduced motion sickness. Agencies should actively investigate and incorporate VR into their training programs.

Summary Bryce Jenkins, a PhD student in the Department of Psychology at Carleton University, discusses his research on the deployment of SWAT or tactical teams and the associated risks. He challenges the notion of the militarization of police and the belief that the deployment of tactical teams increases the risk to the public. Bryce's research focuses on understanding the context and nature of calls that tactical officers respond to, and he found that the primary response of tactical officers is to high-risk calls. He also highlights the importance of considering relevant environmental factors and the limitations of relying solely on the initial call type to assess risk. The conversation explores the use of tactical officers in law enforcement and their potential impact on public safety. The guest, Bryce Jenkins, discusses the effectiveness of using tactical officers to augment patrol and the value of their specialized resources. He also addresses the concern that tactical officers are predisposed to use force, highlighting research that shows they actually reduce the likelihood and severity of force. The conversation delves into the concept of naturalistic decision making and how the expertise and training of tactical officers contribute to their superior decision-making abilities. The importance of debriefing and continuous learning in improving decision making is emphasized. Overall, the conversation challenges the notion that tactical officers pose an increased risk to the public and highlights the benefits they bring to law enforcement. Takeaways There is no evidence that the deployment of SWAT or tactical teams increases the risk to the public. Tactical officers primarily respond to high-risk calls, but they also provide support and backup to frontline officers in lower-risk situations. The initial call type alone is not sufficient to assess the level of risk in an incident; relevant context and environmental factors must be considered. Policy and operational practices should be informed by research findings to ensure effective and appropriate deployment of tactical teams. Using tactical officers to augment patrol can be an effective use of specialized resources. Research shows that tactical officers actually reduce the likelihood and severity of force. Tactical officers' expertise and training contribute to their superior decision-making abilities. Debriefing and continuous learning are critical for improving decision making in law enforcement. The notion that tactical officers pose an increased risk to the public is challenged.

Episode Summary Dr. Pete Blair is the Executive Director of the Advanced Law Enforcement Rapid Response Training (ALERRT) Center and a Professor of Criminal Justice at Texas State University.  Dr. Blair discusses the need to reform police training in order to address the current crisis in policing. He emphasizes the importance of an evidence-informed approach and highlights the work of ALERRT in providing critical incident response training. Blair identifies the shortcomings of the traditional model of police training, including the focus on ideal techniques and the lack of transferability to real-world situations. He advocates for a shift towards an ecological dynamics approach, which emphasizes self-organization, contextualization, and problem-solving. Blair argues that training should focus on outcomes rather than specific techniques and should incorporate rich and variable environments to enhance transferability. The conversation explores the concept of self-organization in training and how it can lead to more effective and efficient performance. The discussion includes the importance of setting clear intentions and understanding the intention structure in any given situation. They emphasize the need for trainers to guide learners towards exploring more optimal and effective solutions while still allowing for self-organization. The conversation also touches on the role of attention and the shift from internal focus to goal-focused attention. Dr. Blair highlight the importance of understanding what learners will do in real-world situations and focusing on the desired outcome rather than rigid techniques or formations. Takeaways The traditional model of police training is not effective in enhancing the retention and transfer of critical performance skills. Police training should adopt an evidence-informed approach and focus on outcomes rather than specific techniques. Training should incorporate rich and variable environments to enhance transferability to real-world situations. Self-organization is a key concept in training, where the body organizes around the intended outcome to achieve it efficiently and effectively. Contextualization and problem-solving should be emphasized in training to prepare officers for the complex and ever-changing environments they operate in. Setting clear intentions and understanding the intention structure is crucial for self-organization in training. Trainers should guide learners towards exploring more optimal and effective solutions while still allowing for self-organization. Attention should be goal-focused rather than internally focused. Understanding what learners will do in real-world situations is important for effective training. Focusing on the desired outcome is more important than rigid techniques or formations.

Professor Chris Cushion discusses the transformation of police personal safety training using scenario-based training, emphasizing the need for a pedagogical shift and the integration of decision-making and skill acquisition within tactical contexts. He addresses the challenges of implementing change and the disparity between traditional training models and the gold standard of scenario-based training. The conversation delves into the importance of implicit learning, the flaws of front-loading skills, and the need for contextualized practice. The role of instructors in coaching through scenarios and the limitations of traditional debriefs are also highlighted. Professor Cushion discusses the transformation of police personal safety training using scenario-based training, highlighting the challenges, evidence, and impact of the new approach. Dr. Cushion also addresses the cultural and political dilemmas in implementing change and the adoption of the new training model by the College of Policing in England and Wales. Takeaways: The need for a pedagogical shift in police training towards scenario-based training that integrates decision-making and skill acquisition within tactical contexts. The importance of implicit learning and the flaws of front-loading skills in traditional training models. The role of instructors in coaching through scenarios and the limitations of traditional debriefs in police training. The challenges of implementing change and the disparity between traditional training models and the gold standard of scenario-based training. Scenario-based training offers a more effective approach to police personal safety training, focusing on performance versus learning and practice design. Cultural and political dilemmas present challenges in implementing change in police training, requiring a shift in policy frameworks and police culture. The College of Policing in England and Wales has adopted the scenario-based training model, with a focus on standardization and evidence-based impact assessment. The transformation of police training involves re-culturing trainers and learners, overcoming the influence of past experiences and embracing a new pedagogical approach. The pending study comparing the linear technique-based model with the scenario-based model is expected to provide valuable insights into the impact of the new training approach.

Welcome to Episode #35 of the Trainers Bullpen, the final edition in our ‘'How We Learn to Move” series with Dr. Rob Gray Rob Gray is a psychology professor and research psychologist with a focus on perceptual-motor control in driving, aviation, and sports. He also hosts the Perception & Action Podcast, is the author of two bestselling books on the acquisition of movement skills ‘How We Learn To Move' and ‘Learning to Optimize Movement', and he serves as the Skill Acquisition Specialist for the Boston Red Sox. In this interview, Dr. Gray discusses the key aspects from chapters 7 and 8 of How We Learn to Move. Rob provides insights on how coaches and trainers can consider the Constraints Led Approach of a new way forward in facilitating the development of adaptability and decision making in our officers. Further, Rob discusses the importance of understanding the kinetic chain and how that relates to the manner in which we set up movement drills and also how the conditions of the original learning environment are so important for creating resilience and ‘stickiness' of our performer's skills. Additional topics covered in this interview are the importance of destabilization, self-exploration and self-organization, how to amplify information in order to invite affordances for action, structured variability as a critical aspect for motor learning and the critical need for ‘perturbances' during learning – which is a concept pretty much completely at odds with current law enforcement training. This interview contains practical insights on how trainers should understand and apply aspects of the Constraints Led Approach to help our officers develop the critical cognitive and physical skills they need on the street!

Rob Gray is a psychology professor and research psychologist with a focus on perceptual-motor control in driving, aviation, and sports. He also hosts the Perception & Action Podcast, is the author of two bestselling books on the acquisition of movement skills ‘How We Learn To Move' and ‘Learning to Optimize Movement', and he serves as the Skill Acquisition Specialist for the Boston Red Sox. In this interview, Dr. Gray discusses the key aspects from chapters 5 and 6 of How We Learn to Move. Rob provides insights on how coaches and trainers can embrace a motor learning environment that is a nonlinear, self-organizational model of movement. Also mentioned is how the perception of the world is embodied and how affordances shape the way we perceive opportunities for action. Dr. Gray introduces the important concept of ‘invariance' and why it matters in performance and coaching. Additional topics covered in this interview are embodied perception, Gibson's Affordances and his theory in conflict with traditionalist views, body & action capacity scaling, the importance of variability, intrinsic dynamics and how they relate to movement variability, and how the ‘law of attraction' relates to movement variability and invariance. This interview contains practical insights on how trainers should embrace the ecological, nonlinear, self-organizational model of instruction, modify constraints to cause learners to self-organize movements, and understand the application of affordances and the laws of attraction to design effective training environments. Find Dr. Gray's exceptional 'Perception / Action Podcast' here: https://perceptionaction.com/

Welcome to Episode # 33 of the Trainers Bullpen, the ‘'How We Learn to Move series– Part 2" Rob Gray is a psychology professor and research psychologist with a focus on perceptual-motor control in driving, aviation, and sports. He also hosts the Perception & Action Podcast, is the author of two books, including two bestsellers on the acquisition of movement skills ‘How We Learn To Move' and ‘Learning to Optimize Movement', and he serves as the Skill Acquisition Specialist for the Boston Red Sox.  In this interview, Dr. Gray addresses key concepts from chapters 3 and 4 of ‘How We Learn To Move' and he delves into the importance of movement variability and the degrees of freedom of movement, which sets the foundation for the entire training design and coaching and the instructional model that follows. Rob explains the two predominant schools of thought on this issue - the information processing model and the self-organization model - and illustrates their differences using examples from sports domains.  Topics discussed in this interview include information processing model, self-organization model, explanation of ‘Freedom Through Constraints', Newell's alternative view of how to execute and learn motor skills, why actions are not caused by constraints, and the three types of constraints in the self-organization system.  This interview contains practical insights on how trainers should design and apply training based on research from ecological dynamics and constraints-led approach to enhance movement variability, promote self-organization, and create conditions for better perception, decision making, and performance in learners. Listeners are strongly encouraged to read chapters 3 and 4 of How We Learn To Move to bolster your understanding of these important motor learning principles. Previous episodes on the Trainer's Bullpen contain research papers relating to these concepts that you can access and download for *free* at www.trainersbullpen.com

Rob Gray is a psychology professor and research psychologist with a focus on perceptual-motor control in driving, aviation, and sports. He also hosts the Perception & Action Podcast, is the author of two books, including a bestseller on learning movement skills, and serves as the Skill Acquisition Specialist for the Boston Red Sox. In this interview, Rob Gray discusses key aspects from chapters 1 and 2 of his best-selling book: ‘How We Learn to Move'. Dr. Gray provides valuable insights for trainers looking improve their motor learning design and reduce the risk of injury. He challenges the traditional approach to motor skill training and emphasizes the importance of embracing contextual variability in the training environment. Topics covered in this podcast include Dr. Gray's background that led to the conceptualization and success of his book, The ‘Myth' of the One Correct Repeatable Technique, the importance of variability in movement for skilled performance, how constraints impact movement variability, and the relationship between variability and adaptability. This interview contains practical insights on how trainers should rethink traditional ‘technique-based' motor skill training methods and embrace a nonlinear ecological methodology to improve their training design, enhance learning, retention and transfer, and reduce the risk of injury.

Welcome to Episode 31 of the Trainer's Bullpen, ‘Motor Learning Feedback' with Dr. Tim Lee. The type of feedback that a trainer or coach gives their students and the manner in which that feedback is provided is of critical importance to the effective of how well motor skills are acquired, retained and transferred. The most common type of feedback that is often applied in the law enforcement motor skill learning environment is described as ‘quick and corrective'. That is, the trainer views mistakes and errors as enemies and therefore is very quick to step in and provide feedback when the student is struggling. In addition, the feedback that is usually provided is highly corrective ‘this is what you are doing wrong, this is what you need to do to correct it, now do that'. Ironically, while most prevalent, this type of feedback has been demonstrated to result in the worst retention and transfer of movement skills to the ‘real world'. In this interview, Motor Learning expert, researcher, accomplished author and coach for the Titleist Performance Institute, Dr. Tim Lee will discuss the impact of feedback and the methods of feedback that trainers should consider in order to optimize the learning potential of their students. In this interview we discuss: ·      The different types of feedback – Inherent and Augmented ·      Using knowledge of results rather than knowledge of performance feedback ·      The importance of student motivation and how feedback can either bolster, or impair, student motivation ·      The relationship between feedback types and the students focus of attention ·      The danger of creating students who are ‘feedback dependent' and how to avoid this from happening ·      The use of video as a feedback tool ·      The timing of feedback – hint – delayed feedback is usually optimal ·      Bandwidth feedback – what it is and how to apply it to really maximize your feedback potential for motor learning. Have your pen and paper ready. This interview contains very important information to help you advance your tradecraft as a trainer! As a reminder, all resources, documents and links are available to you at www.trainersbullpen.com Dr. Tim Lee can be contacted at scapps@mcmaster.ca

In this episode, we welcome back to the show, Dr. Paul Taylor. Paul is a Professor at University of Colorado Denver where he studies decision-making, human factors, and system safety in the context of police interactions with the public. He has over ten years of practical law enforcement experience including time as a department training manager, patrol sergeant, and use-of-force instructor. Paul is the founder of the Association of Force Investigators and has delivered law enforcement related instruction for academy, field training, and advanced in-service audiences as well as graduate and undergraduate level courses. Paul is actively engaged in law enforcement research and training across the United States and internationally.  In this interview you will learn about a fascinating study with important training implications that was conducted on the ability, or more accurately, the lack of ability, of officers to effectively and efficiently transition between their sidearm and the Taser or between their Taser and their sidearm under time compressed events. The ability for officers to have the requisite motor skill to be able to conduct these transitions is very important for officer and public safety. This study identifies significant gaps in performance and helps further our understanding of how to improve our training design and delivery to ensure we enable our officers to develop these essential skills. As a reminder, the research paper referenced in this interview is appended to the show notes and free to download over at the Trainers Bullpen website at www.trainersbullpen.com

Law enforcement trainers frequently stress the importance of Situational Awareness or 'SA'. But what even is it? If you ask a room full of trainers, you will get as many varied answers as there are people in the room! And yet, situational awareness in other domains has been found to be the hallmark of expert performance. Experts have developed ways of rapidly assessing an unfolding, often ambiguous event, and knowing what to anticipate, where to scan, how to understand what they are seeing, and are then able to make the most effective decisions to solve the problem. In this interview, Dr's Huhta and Di Nota will discuss the research they conducted on expert performers and their situational awareness patterns in law enforcement. The paper which serves as the foundation for this discussion is titled “Deriving Expert Knowledge of Situational Awareness in Policing: a Mixed-Methods Study” and was published in the Journal of Police and Criminal Psychology in 2023. In this interview, we explore: ·      The importance of situational awareness, ·      The definition of situational awareness – what does it mean? ·      How experts actually attend to and process unfolding incidents, ·      Differences between how experts and novices scan and assess a scene, ·      The 7 themes of expert situational awareness, ·      Considerations for structuring a learning environment to assist students with the skill of developing situational awareness expertise, ·      Accelerating ‘game intelligence' in training by applying the principles of the 7 S/A themes. As a reminder, the publication we are speaking about in this interview is available for download over at the Trainers Bullpen website at www.trainersbullpen.com

According to a national survey of police mental health, a staggering 90% of police officers affected by stress reported stigma as a barrier to seeking mental health support. In this very important interview, Senior Lecturer, Department of Sport and Exercise Sciences at Manchester Metropolitan University, Dr. Mariana Kaiseler, discusses the research that she and colleagues have published specifically  pertaining to the stress of police work and the many training, policy and leadership implications that need to be considered in order to help advance police officer mental health and resilience. Two research papers used as the foundation for this interview are Ambulatory Assessment of Psychophysiological Stress among Police Officers published in the journal of Occupational Health, and Transitioning from Recruit to Officer: An Investigation of how Stress Appraisal and Coping Influence Work Engagement. In this interview, we discuss: ·      Why stress is, or ought to be, such a concern for police trainers and agency leadership, ·      Chronic vs acute stress and the relationship between them. ·      The shocking reality that it is actually not the acute stress of incidents that officer encounter that put them at greatest risk of harm to their mental wellness, but organizational stress. ·       The deficiencies of organizational supports that are critical to help keep officers resilient and mentally healthy. ·      How the policing ‘culture' causes officers to be reluctant to seek out help and will actually avoid critical social supports. ·      How poor officer wellness negatively impacts police / community trust. ·      The importance of intentional stress-management routines and how police trainers should understand their role as an essential component of helping their students develop intentional mental health strategies. Please note, if you or any officer you know is experiencing the negative and possibility debilitating effects of stress, please be courageous and seek out life-changing help. The week that this interview was conducted, several police officers in the US and Canada took their lives by their own hand. Also, this same week, a report was released by the National Police Federation indicating that mental wellness amongst RCMP officers was at a point of crisis and still plummeting. This is a clarion call to action for police leadership. If you need assistance or know of someone who does, in Canada, please consider contacting Canada Beyond The Blue (www.canadabeyondtheblue.com )a volunteer organization committed to providing a community of essential support to law enforcement members and their families. In the United States, contact COPLINE at www.copline.org or call their crisis line at 1-800-COPLINE.

In this episode, we speak with Dr Logan Markwell, human factors scientist and motor behaviour expert to discuss the Challenge Point Framework and why coaches and trainers should understand and apply this framework in the design and delivery of motor skills training. In this interview you will learn about nominal vs functional task difficulties, the role of variability and contextual interference in motor learning, how to appropriately balance performer capability with task difficulty, the difference between performance and learning and why coaches and trainers so often get this wrong, the importance of offline learning and instructor feedback, as well as several other nuggets of evidence-led training wisdom! An exciting bonus in this interview is that it rounds out with asking Dr Markwell questions about his motor learning ‘Myth Bust Monday' Instagram Posts. You will be fascinated to hear long-held motor learning myths ‘busted'! I hope you can hear some of those golden idols of traditionalist law enforcement training crashing to the ground! If you are not following Logan on Instagram you will want to be sure to do so! As a reminder, research related to the challenge point framework is appended to the show notes and free to download over at the Trainers Bullpen website at www.trainersbullpen.com

In this interview Dr. Craig Bennell from Carleton University in Ontario Canada discusses the research he and his colleagues conducted into the core Knowledge, Skills and Abilities that law enforcement officers must possess in order to effectively manage potentially violent police public interactions. This important conversation evolves from a study that was published in Frontiers in Psychology in March 2022. In this interview Dr. Bennell outlines the critical findings of the paper that identified ten core knowledge, skills and abilities that are required by police officers for excellent performance in high pressure situations in order to meet societal expectations. Some of these KSA's discussed are: Awareness and Management of Stress Effects, Communication Skills, Decision Making and Problem Solving, Perceptual Skills and Motor Skills Relating to Use of Force, among others. This interview discusses training and instructional methods to consider in order to help law enforcement officers  improve their ability to manage potentially violent interactions with the public by focusing on developing their essential knowledge, skills and abilities through effective training design and delivery.

Welcome to episode 25 of the Trainer's Bullpen. Training Under Pressure with Dr. Tim Lee. If you are interested in how to train officers for the best decision making and motor performance on the street, this interview is for you as Dr. Lee blows several training myths out of the water. In this episode, we welcome back to the bullpen, Dr. Tim Lee, professor emeritus of motor learning from McMaster University to discuss the relationship between pressure, training under pressure, and officer performance in the line of duty where it counts the most. Have paper and pen ready as Dr. Lee discusses the role of pressure in law enforcement training and the effect of pressure on officer performance in real life shooting and defensive tactics situations. We also discuss how attention and perception are affected by pressure; how skills ‘well rehearsed' in low pressure learning environments can quickly collapse under real threat conditions. In addition, Tim discusses how pressure affects attentional processes, internal vs external attention, that can adversely affect perception and performance. Also discussed is the ‘Progression / regression' theory of motor learning and the difference between ‘performance' improvements and real ‘learning' including online and offline learning. The importance of training under conditions of realistic pressure to develop the ability to perform under those same conditions in ‘the real world.' Why ‘what we practice' is ‘what we learn' and therefore why skills practiced in sterile or low-pressure learning environments don't transfer well. The importance of richly varying and contextualizing your learning environment to develop adaptable skill application in pressure conditions. And many other critical concepts and practical takeaways for trainers.

Welcome to Episode 24 of the Trainer's Bullpen, ‘Relationships Between Heart Rate Variability (HRV), Occupational Performance, and Fitness for Tactical Personnel' with Colin Tomes. For years law enforcement trainers have sought to understand the relationship between heart rate and officer performance and have frequently, and incorrectly, applied a linear application from heart rate to performance decrements under conditions of high stress. If you are interested in refining your understanding of cardiovascular function and human performance, this interview is for you. In this interview, Colin outlines the findings of his Systematic Review that was published in Frontiers in Public Health. This interview touches on: ·     The important differences between HR and HRV and how they correlate, or don't correlate, to human performance in tactical populations. ·     Understanding the often misunderstood ‘stress response' and the relationship between stress arousal and performance. ·     The role that sleep plays in maintaining a healthy HRV and improving the arousal / performance relationship. ·     The important interaction between PNS and SNS as they relate to cardiovascular function and performance. ·     The relationship between ‘cognitive load' and the adverse affect on HRV. ·     How HRV monitoring by agencies can provide an accurate indication of the stress arousal state of the performer. ·     Concepts for agencies to explore in implementing HRV monitoring in both candidate selection for specialty tactical units as well as in-training monitoring of HRV. ·     And many more important takeaways! Reminder - you can access and download a copy of the cited research paper at www.trainersbullpen.com

Welcome to Episode 23 of the Trainer's Bullpen, ‘Offsetting the Negative Consequences of Pressure on Marksmanship' with Daniel Cooper. In this interview Dan discusses the relationship between stress arousal and officer performance with firearms in combat conditions. Importantly, Daniel discusses the very important systematic review and meta-analysis that he and colleagues conducted that reinforced the fact that officer performance under threat conditions can be significantly improved by ensuring the training design and implementation includes early contextually relevant pressure. The study ‘Negative Consequences of Pressure on Marksmanship May be Offset by Early Training Exposure to Contextually Relevant Threat Training: A Systematic Review and Meta Analysis, was published in Human Factors in 2023. If your goal is to deliver training, or to train yourself, so that it develops the ability to perform well under high pressure conditions, this interview is for you. Dan Cooper exhorts firearms and skills trainers to seriously reconsider the manner in which firearms training is presently conducted in many law enforcement training academies and agencies. Daniel is a human performance specialist who focuses on improving individual and team performance in high-pressure, high-consequence situations for first responders and tactical operators. He is currently completing a 3-year PhD research project investigating the impacts of pressure and evidence-based training methodologies in Use of Force behaviours to improve the transfer of training to performance. Daniel has built on his previous academic understanding from a double master's degree in physiology and integrated cognitive factors and compliments this through unique experience from 18yrs service in the Special Air Service, high-performance coaching in professional sports and personal pursuits in conquering the world's toughest extreme endurance events across the planets most unforgiving environments. 

Welcome to Episode 22 of Trainers Bullpen, the ‘Evaluation of Tactical Movement and Firearm Draw Performance During Charging Knife Attacks' with Dr. Michael Kantor Assistant Professor of Exercise Physiology at Ohio Northern University.  It is of course no surprise to law enforcement officers and trainers that edged weapons can pose a lethal threat to officers. Many of the critical blood bearing vessels lie very close to the surface of the skin and even a small blade or an improvised edges weapon can quickly inflict potentially fatal injuries.  Law enforcement trainers owe an extreme debt of gratitude to Lt (ret) Dennis Tueller who in 1982 first explored the question of at what distance does someone charging at an officer with an edged weapon pose a potentially lethal threat to an officer. Tueller found that a subject could cover 21 feet in the time it took an officer to draw their handgun and fire one round.  Although some additional peer-reviewed research has been done since Tueller's original work on how fast suspects can sprint and cover ground and how long it takes officers to react, draw and shoot, Dr. Kantor's current study, using advanced measurement technology, is the first one to deeply explore the movement patterns and draw kinematics of an officer when a suspect is rapidly charging an officer.  In this critically important interview, Dr. Kantor discusses the research, the findings and the shocking implications of this study for law enforcement officers and trainers.  Summary of implications include. The “myth” of the perfect draw technique that successful officers do not repeat techniques they solve problems and repeat outcomes; One handed shooting – at close range attacks the brain will drive forward the draw and shooting response at the speed of survival. This typically involves shooting one handed as the muzzle clears the holster; “Movement is King” - How static range training instills exactly the opposite outcomes that officers need to survive these encounters; Functional fitness is lacking – fitness training regimes need to be designed to develop the explosive, fast-twitch muscle systems officers need to be able to move rapidly…and many more important takeaways.  This study, ‘Evaluation of Tactical Movement and Firearm Draw Performance During Charging Knife Attacks' was published in Police Practice and Research in 2023. Just a reminder, this study is available at www.trainersbullpen.com

Effective law enforcement trainers know the critical importance of conducting force-on-force high-fidelity training. The ability to develop highly adaptable and resilient officers, capable of making excellent decisions during complex and rapidly unfolding events rests squarely on the effectiveness and ‘reality-based' nature of their training. However, over the past year there has , yet again, been several incidents of training incidents in North America where functional and loaded firearms have been discharged during high-fidelity force on force training where only nonlethal training ammunition and non-live firearms should have been used. Many of these incidents were ‘near misses' tragedy where was averted only because of luck, in some of these incidents trainees have been seriously injured, in some fatalities have  resulted. In this timely interview, Trainers Bullpen host Dan Fraser talks with law enforcement training expert Ken Murray, Director of the Reality Based Training Association and author of Training at the Speed of Life , discusses the critical aspects of designing and implementing training that is “Safe by Design”. This interview contains several important and practical take-aways that law enforcement trainers should be sure to implement in order to conduct safe scenario-based training.

With thousands of policing agencies scrambling in recent years to change use of force policies and provide 'deescalation' training to their officers and millions if not billions of dollars being spent to provide this training, do we know if it is even making a difference to impact officer performance on the street? Interestingly, despite widespread promotion and proliferation of deescalation training, no research has empirically demonstrated that this training is reducing use of force frequency or severity in the field. In addition, it is unknown if these policy reactions and unproven deescalation training programs are having unintended negative consequences that may increase injuries to officers or citizens. In this fascinating and instructive interview, we speak with Dr. Robin Engel who led a research project with the Louisville Metropolitan Police Department (LMPD) to evaluate the impact of their agency's deescalation program. This study,  'Assessing the Impact of Deescalation Training on Police Behavior: Reducing Police Use of Force in the Louisville Metro Police Department' (published in Criminology & Public Policy) determined that the LMPD deescalation program significantly reduced the frequency of use of force incidents as well as led to reductions in citizen and officer injury rates and severity. This interview contains very important policy and training implications for agencies implementing deescalation or seeking to evaluate the effectiveness of their existing deescalation program. Dr. Engel serves as Senior Vice President at the National Policing Institute, following over 25 years in academic positions within higher education institutions. As an award-winning researcher, she has partnered with dozens of police agencies in the U.S. and internationally, served as Principal Investigator for over a hundred research studies and projects, and ranked among the top academics nationally in criminal justice/criminology. From 2015 – 2019, she served as Vice President for Safety and Reform at the University of Cincinnati, where her executive duties included oversight of daily operations and successful implementation of comprehensive police reforms in the aftermath of a fatal police shooting of an unarmed motorist. As a top scholar and trusted leading authority in police science, Dr. Engel oversees the Institute's vast scientific investments designed to translate and integrate research into practice.

In this insightful interview, human factors expert Gareth Lock discusses the critical aspects of how we should understand sense-making and decision making especially in ambiguous and high-consequence environments. The research shows that if performers have 'successful' outcome following a near-miss, then our perception of the risk is lowered and therefore we are more likely to erode vital safety margins (training, equipment, standards and policy). Gareth explores the importance of distinguishing 'could happen' events from 'almost happened' events, understanding levels of uncertainty, mental models, and avoiding the normalization of deviance. What can law enforcement trainers and supervisors do about this? Gareth explains how we can develop counter-factual thinking to raise understanding of how our perception of risk can shift and how to make probabilities more visible. Finally, Gareth explains his DEBrIEF model of how we can strategically guide our people to build important self-reflection skills to improve decision-making and deeply learn from all incidents and near misses. Gareth Lock is the founder of The Human Diver, an organization set up to deliver education and research into the role and benefit of applying human factors, non-technical skills, psychological safety, and ‘just culture' in sports, military, and scientific diving. He has published the book ‘Under Pressure' and produced the documentary ‘If only…,' both focused on improving safety and performance by looking at incidents through the lens of human factors. Show Notes from Gareth Lock:  www.thehumandiver.com - where everything I do in the world of diving sits!  www.humaninthesystem.com - this is where I put my non-diving programmes! DEBrIEF framework - www.thehumandiver.com/debrief  Under Pressure: Diving Deeper with Human Factors - Gareth Lock - www.thehumandiver.com/underpre 

Shawn Myszka is a Movement Skill Acquisition Coach for NFL players, having worked with numerous All-Pro and Pro Bowl team members. He is also the Founder of the Sport Movement Skill Conference and author of articles and educational materials on mastering movement in sports. Shawn discusses the relevance and value of Bruce Lee's coaching philosophy in movement skill acquisition for law enforcement, as explored in the research paper 'Being Water: how key ideas from the practice of Bruce Lee align with contemporary theorizing in movement skill acquisition' authored by Myszka, Yearby and Davids and published in Sport, Education and Society (2023).  Topics covered in this podcast are the ecological dynamics framework and its differences from traditional linear movement training in law enforcement, the importance of representativeness in learning design. As well as the background, art, style, coaching style, and philosophy of Bruce Lee. The concept of becoming “formless” is also mentioned and its relationship to current ecological dynamics pedagogy.  This interview contains practical insights on how law enforcement training officers should teach, specifically in terms of building emotional intelligence, increasing self-awareness, and fostering a culture of continuous learning and improvement within law enforcement agencies. In addition, Listeners will gain practical insights on how law enforcement trainers can use Bruce Lee's philosophy and ecological dynamics to help their students acquire skillful movement, adapt to dynamic and unpredictable violent encounters, and become more efficient and powerful in their movements. Listeners interested in finding out more about the incredible services and training offered by Shawn and his colleagues as well as information on the highly anticipated 'Sport Movement Skill Conference' can get all the information at Emergence https://emergentmvmt.com/

Law enforcement officers know that their mental toughness is of critical importance on the job. The ability to remain focussed and maintain emotional regulation, to overcome adversity and conflict, and even injury and pain, in order to professionally and effectively manage situations is extremely important. But how do we understand effective ways in which to intentionally and strategically incorporate mental imagery into the law enforcement training paradigm? In this interview, the third in our series on the use of mental imagery in training, Brian Willis from Winning Mind Training will talk about his extensive experience in over 33 years of law enforcement training, in using performance enhancement imagery in law enforcement training, as well as in other domains such has elite level athletic performance, overcoming anxiety, and recovery from serious injury and illness. Topics covered in this interview include what imagery is, how it is different from ‘visualization', the use of imagery to enhance physical performance as well as mental cognitive skills, the different types of imagery and where and when to use them, how to use language effectively in imagery,  and keys to using imagery to enhance learning and make it ‘stick. In addition, Brian will discuss lessons learned from years of using and reforming performance enhancement imagery as a method of effecting powerful change in officers and athletes performance.

This is the second episode in our exciting three-part series on the use of performance enhancement imagery to improve officers skill aquisition, decision making and mental resilience. Dr. Arne Nieuwenhuys is Senior Lecturer in Sport, Exercise and Performance Psychology. He obtained his PhD from VU University Amsterdam. Dr Nieuwenhuys and colleagues published the study “Positive Effects of Police Officer Shooting Performance Under Threat in the Journal of Applied Cognitive Psychology.  In this interview, Dr. Nieuwenhuys explains strategies to consider in order to develop evidence-based interventions that help law enforcement officers improve their performance in those rapidly unfolding, ambiguous and extremely high-pressure situations where it counts the most. Topics reviewed in this podcast are the positive effects of performance enhancement imagery on police offer shooting capability under stress, and how the research supported PETTLEP imagery model effectively achieves functional equivalence. In addition, he discusses the importance of task representativeness in training and how it correlates with the Constraints Led Approach or CLA training method. This interview contains practical insights on the importance of law enforcement trainers using evidence-based interventions such as imagery, PETTLEP model, and task representativeness, to enhance police officers' performance and shooter capability under stress, ultimately improving their ability to handle high-pressure situations on the job.

This part 1 of an exciting 3-part series in which we explore the effective use of performance enhancement imagery. In law enforcement it is generally accepted that officer mental toughness and mental focus is critical for great decision making and performance. Despite this, very few trainers utilize any type of formalized mental training program. In multiple other domains, the use of mental imagery instruction to increase learning, enhance performance and improve adaptive decision-making has been used for years with proven positive effects. In this interview, Dr Adam Nicholls discusses the research findings of the effectiveness of using mental imagery training in sport. He discusses the proven benefits of mental imagery, the content of effective mental imagery, internal vs external perspectives, the imagery ability of the performer and how it can be enhanced. In addition, Adam discusses the PETTLEP imagery model and considerations for applying it in your training and coaching. Dr Adam Nicholls is a professor of psychology at the University of Hull, UK. Adam's main focus of research is on psychosocial support to athletes and coaches ranging from grassroots to elite level. Adam is also an accomplished BJJ competitor and in 2021 he won silver at the British Open in gi and bronze at the 2022 no-gi British Open. Dr Nicholls is the author of the textbook ‘Psychology in Sports Coaching' published by Routledge press. In this important book, Dr Nicholls devotes an entire chapter to the effective use of mental imagery.

Law enforcement officers are often faced with having to make critical shoot or no shoot decisions in rapidly occurring, ambiguous and high-consequence environments. The potential consequences of a decision-making error involving the use of lethal force carries serious implications. What rolecan training play in helping to develop more accurate decision making? In this interview Dr. Taylor explains that his study,  ‘Engineering Resilience into Split-Second Shoot / No Shoot Decision Making' which was published in Police Quarterly, was driven by the need to improve decision-making in the split-second environments that police officers face during potential deadly force encounters. He discusses how the study examined the impact of muzzle position on officer response time to legitimate threats and the likelihood of misdiagnosis shooting errors when no threat was present. Topics discussed in this podcast include the importance of accurate decision-making skills in law enforcement, the role of improved judgment and tactical capability among officers, and how does an officers muzzle position impact the accuracy of decision making This interview contains practical insights on how engineering resilience into split-second decision-making environments through factors like muzzle position, officers can improve their decision-making and reduce the likelihood of misdiagnosis shooting errors. Additionally, Paul discusses how continued research into other factors that may affect officer decision-making in these environments is necessary to improve law enforcement training.

The prevalence and impact of recruit injuries during academy physical training is a significant issue. Recruit injuries can cause recruits to fall out of the training cadence resulting in a failure to successfully complete the academy, back-trooping and in serious cases, eliminating the recruits law enforcement employment prospects altogether.   Therefore, the need for evidence-based injury prevention programs in law enforcement academies to minimize the high incidence of injuries, particularly during physical training is a critical issue. Dr. Jay Dawes is an Associate Professor of Applied Exercise Science at Oklahoma State University. Dawes has worked as a university athletic performance coordinator, strength/performance coach, personal trainer, and educator for approximately 25 years. His paper ‘Profiling the Injuries of Law Enforcement Recruits During Academy Training' was published in Sports Science, Medicine and Rehabilitation. In this interview Jay provides insightful data and knowledge on the influencing factors of law enforcement injuries during training and how to mitigate those injuries. Topics discussed in this podcast are the common law enforcement training conditions that inflict injury, the most common types of injury, Strategies that should be considered to 'pre-habilitate' recruits against injuries during training, Effectiveness of a 'voluntary' pre-academy fitness program, and the relationship between previous injuries potentially causing future injuries.  This interview contains practical insights on how strategically prioritizing injury prevention as part of training design is crucial for the safety of recruits and the effectiveness of law enforcement organizations.

The most important goal of police academy training is the retention and transfer of knowledge and skills. In this interview, Dr. Staci Yutzie, training manager at Oregon's statewide public safety training academy, Department of Public Safety Training, or DPSST discusses the evidence-based, adult learning approach that was undertaken at the Center for Policing Excellence in Oregon to completely overhaul the state academy training program. Staci explains the rational to move away from the para-military style stress-based approach and adopt the collegiate approach to training. Dr. Yutzie also explains the process undertaken by her and colleagues to redesign the law enforcement curriculum which included the move away from block or siloed training and adopting a truly interleaved methodology. Topics covered in this podcast are the building blocks of evidence-based training, the philosophies used to approach training design and implementation, and the necessity of retention and transfer analysis. In this interview, valuable perspectives are shared regarding how law enforcement trainers, curriculum designers and academy executives ought to approach the significance of appropriately designing a law enforcement educational syllabus and instructional pedagogy for their trainees. Listeners to this podcast can download a copy of the research paper, which was published in the textbook,  Interventions, Training and Technologies for Improved Police Wellbeing and Performance, at Trainersbullpen.com.

The use of the vascular neck restraint by law enforcement officers has been the topic of recent, intense, debate. Special interest groups have equated the use of the vascular neck restraint with ‘near-death' experiences and have called for outright bans. Policy makers have been very critical of agencies that train and permit the use of the VNR, and some agencies have been influenced by heavy political pressure to discontinue its use. All of this debate has taken place in the absence or ignorance of what the research actually says about the safety of the VNR when applied by officers in the operational setting. In this interview, Dr. Craig Bennell, professor of Psychology at Carleton University in Ottawa, Ontario, where he also serves as Director of Carleton's Police Research Laboratory, talks about the important findings from research conducted by an incredibly talented cast of international researchers. The paper is titled ‘Safety of Vascular Neck Restraint Applied by Law Enforcement Officers' and was published in the Journal of Forensic and Legal Medicine. Topics covered in this interview regarding the VNR research findings include, the significance and frequency of use of force, the application and consequences of the Vascular Neck Restraint, how many agencies teach the proper use of it, the methodology of the VNR, the effectiveness of its technique, and, of course, the actual empirical safety of the technique. This interview contains practical insights on how agency administrators and trainers should consider the technical, training and political implications of the VNR method and its impact on police training and policy. In addition, in this interview, Dr Bennell strongly exhorts police leaders to use an evidence-based approach to critical decisions that broadly impact officer and public safety. A copy of the paper can be accessed and downloaded at www.trainersbullpen.com

It is important to recognize the value of highly contextual training to equip law enforcement officers to be professional and adaptive decision-makers. However, the majority of current training practices often develop officers who lack the ability to transfer static skills into the highly dynamic operational demands that they face.   In this interview, Dr. Mario Staller, professor at the University of Applied Sciences of Police and Public Administration North-Rhine Westphalia in Aachen, Germany, talks about the importance of officer adaptability towards the context of  highly realistic use of force scenarios and why it is important to not strip the solution space from the problem in the training context. Topics covered in this interview include the definition and application of the Constraints Led Approach, how best to implement the CLA into a learning environment while considering appropriate design methodology. In addition, the critical importance of including aspects of high context relevance from the criterion environment into the training will be discussed. This interview contains helpful practical insights on how trainers should design effective training and communicate with their students for optimal retention and transfer of skills.  This is a call to action for law enforcement trainers to change curriculum and design into a CLA oriented training program.

For many years, law enforcement trainers and tactical professionals have been somewhat familiar with the importance of how intentional breathing techniques can help lower physiological arousal. This is a critical concept because physiological state directly impacts emotional regulation, attention and quality of decision making. However, there has been little in the form of evidence-based research as to which types of breathing techniques are more (or less) effective in quickly reducing physiological arousal. In this interview, we talk with Harvard trained neuroscientist, with expertise in neurobiology of stress and stress interventions, Dr. Melis Yilmaz Balban about incredibly important research that compared the effectiveness of Cyclic Hyperventilation, Box Breathing and the Cyclic Sigh. This research study, ‘Brief Structured Respiration Practices Enhance Mood and Reduce Physiological Arousal', was published in Cell Reports Medicine in January 2023. A copy of the paper is attached to the show notes at www.trainersbullpen.com In this interview with Dr Balban, we discuss the research finding that the Cyclic Sigh is a significantly more effective technique to rapidly lower physiological arousal when compared to the much more commonly taught ‘Box Breathing' technique. In addition, the Cyclic Sigh can be conducted extremely quickly (during conflict),  and, importantly, can be automated with practice. This interview contains helpful practical insights on how trainers should consider adjusting training methodology to improve officer performance. In addition, Dr Balban briefly discusses NeuroSmart – exciting new technology that will help officers learn and automate the Cyclic Sigh during the training process. This holds incredible promise for advancing law enforcement and military training!

All law enforcement instructors would agree that one of the core functions of police skills training is to develop great adaptive decision-making skills in our officers. The question that must be asked is, what is the relationship between instructor / coach feedback methods and the development of independent adaptive decision-making and, are there proven techniques that work better than others? In this interview, we talk with decision-making expert Dr. Joel Suss about several critical components of training that should be understood and implemented in order to accomplish these important training objectives. Topics covered in this interview include recognition-primed / naturalistic decision making, the use of effective probing questions to get ‘inside the students head', the effective use of story-telling, and the application of the ‘7 cognitive skills' to guide the student to understand, assess and correct their own decision-making and performance. This interview contains helpful practical insights on how trainers should consider adjusting training methodology to improve officer performance.

In this interview, Dr. Jonathan Wender from POLIS Solutions talk to the Trainer's Bullpen about the ‘Adaptive Defensive and Protective Tactics' (ADAPT) research report which was published in March 2022. You can download a copy of this report by going to the Trainers Bullpen website at trainersbullpen.com. This highly important research presents the current state of police control and defensive tactics training and makes twenty core recommendations that police academies, agency leaders and law enforcement trainers must be aware of. Dr. Wender discusses the research report, the perspectives on police training presently and what he feels are the ‘top three' changes that need to be made imminently. This is a ‘call to action' so have your pen and paper ready!

In this interview Dr Paula Di Nota from the University of Toronto discusses the findings and training implications of her research review ‘Complex Motor Learning and Police Training: Applied, Cognitive, and Clinical Perspectives' (Frontiers in Psychology; 2019). The purpose of the review was to explore pedagogical best practices to bridge the gap between scientific knowledge of human performance and best practices to consider for training complex motor skills. Ten vital aspects of the components of effective training are discussed such as the role of pressure in training, physiological and emotional regulation, performance enhancement imagery, and the importance of error in training among others. Watch the interview video here: https://www.trainersbullpen.ca

In this interview, human performance expert Dr Rob Gray from Arizona State University and author of ‘How We Learn to Move' and ‘Learning to Optimize Movement' discusses the important findings of the research paper ‘Police Training Revisited – Meeting the Demands of Conflict Training in Police with an Alternative Pedagogical Approach' (Policing; December 2020). While operational police actions place high demands on police officers, and training should be providing the skills necessary to meet those demands, the research shows there is a significant problem. The problem is evidenced by a large gap between the current training methodology and the lack of retention and transfer of skills. A serious ‘call to action' for the reimagination of police training is discussed along with the introduction of the ‘Constraints Led Approach' to motor skills training which holds great promise for improving police training. Watch the video interview here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0FeIAmufO8k&t=1s

In this interview Dr Simon Baldwin from Carleton University walks us through the fascinating research study ‘A Reasonable Officer: Examining the Relationships Among Stress, Training, and Performance in a Highly Realistic Lethal Force Scenario' (Frontiers in Psychology; January 2022). Dr Baldwin presents the findings and importantly, he addresses the critical implications for training to help build law enforcement officers who can make excellent decisions in rapidly unfolding, high consequence events. Have you paper and pen handy. There are a lot of incredible insights for trainers in this interview! Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fOUWw0aBpyg&feature=youtu.be

In this interview experts in behavior analysis, police psychology, ergonomics and exercise science Dr's John and Dawn O'Neill discuss the results of their important study ‘Police Academy Training, Performance and Learning'. The study involved an empirical analyses of training at 3 large regional police academies in the United States during the motor training of simple and complex defensive and control tactics skills. The study included an analysis of block training versus spaced training on retention and transfer of skills. Types of instructional feedback methods are also discussed. The author's provide recommendations and a call for research based on the performance and learning literature, grounded in behavioral science. Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ywYN9vsmOG0&feature=youtu.be

In this interview human performance expert Dr Rob Gray from Arizona State University and author of ‘How We Learn to Move' and ‘Learning to Optimize Movement' discusses the important differences between ‘linear' (technique based) and ‘non-linear' (ecological) motor skill training. Dr Gray helps us interpret the findings of a fascinating recent research project that explored the different performance outcomes in police knife defense training that utilized both linear and non-linear training methods. Implications for law enforcement training is discussed. Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=doU-pE74FfY&feature=youtu.be

In this interview about motor learning principles, Dr Tim Lee (McMaster University; Department of Kinesiology) discusses an important article he wrote for The Tactical Edge magazine in the Summer 2022 Edition, in which Lee outlined several critical factors that law enforcement trainers should consider when designing and implementing motor skills training. Implementing these important aspects into training has been proven through repeated studies across multiple domains to enhance both retention and transfer of motor skills.