CIT Training, Mental Health Attitudes, and Empathy among Campus Police Officers

The prevalence of mental health problems and suicide are rising on college campuses, and campus police officers are often the first responders to crises related to mental health. However, little research exists that examines the attitudes and preparedness of campus police officers for responding to mental health crises. This study examined whether CIT training was related to mental health attitudes, empathy, and perceptions of confidence and effectiveness at managing mental health-focused calls in a sample of 175 campus police officers. Officers with CIT training reported feeling more prepared, confident, and effective at managing mental health calls, but CIT training was not associated with mental health attitudes or empathy. Officers with more years of policing experience reported greater levels of cognitive and affective empathy. Officers estimated that 22% of their calls involved a mental health issue, and the results are discussed in the context of needing officers to be well-trained at managing these types of calls. Needed research in this area involves collecting objective outcomes of CIT training on college campuses similar to what has been done in studies with municipal police as well as focusing on the experience of students who have interacted with police during mental health-focused calls.