Valuation of Services Offered by Mental Health Professionals in Swat Team Members: A Study of the Lubbock, Texas Swat Team

Abstract

Special weapons and tactics teams (hereafter referred to as SWAT), which typically include negotiation teams and officers with special training, often deal with the mentally ill in crisis situations. There has been a trend in the United States to use mental health professionals as either consultants or negotiators when dealing with this population (Butler et al. 1993). This has created a new field of practice for mental health professionals, but this area has received limited attention in scholarly journals because the use of deadly force is not a topic that many researchers readily discuss and research (Clark et al. 2000). Little research has been directed toward examining the relationships and interactions between law enforcement and mental health systems/professionals (Casey et al. 1992; Keilitz and Roesch 1992; Steadman 1992). Not much thought has been given to the interaction between law enforcement and mental health systems (Coggins and Pynchon 1998). Decades ago, federal and state agencies started to recognize the possible benefits of using mental health professionals as consultants to SWAT teams. Since that recognition, many law enforcement agencies have not only considered the possible benefits of using mental health professionals but have actually started using them as consultants to the negotiation team (Fuselier 1989). Existing evidence suggests that the use of mental health professionals in law enforcement is beneficial (Wolff et al. 1997). Typically, interactions between the mental health system and law enforcement involve using mental health professionals as consultants or as on-scene advisors to negotiation teams (Deane et al. 1999; Finn 1989; Hammer and van Zandt 1994; Olivero 1990). Although limited, the research in this area suggests that mental health professionals can make important contributions to the field of law enforcement, particularly in/during crisis situations involving SWAT teams. Many of the studies that examined the interactions between SWAT teams and the mental health system have limitations. Few studies, if any, have examined the value placed on the contributions of mental health professionals by SWAT team members. Previous literature has only studied the negotiators or team leaders of SWAT teams and their use of mental health professional services in crisis situations. Variables like rank, age, and previous experience with mental health professionals on-and off the job have not been examined to address whether they make a difference in the value placed on the contributions of SWAT team consultants. Nonetheless, there is a need to examine factors that might influence the acceptance by SWAT team members of the services provided by mental health professionals.