For the Justice System

MINDFULNESS

Mindfulness to benefit our community

Mindfulness Training for Law Enforcement & Justice System

Evidence-based mindfulness skills training is a wellness intervention that is increasingly being used in law enforcement. InStill Mindfulness offers mindfulness training programs that will be individually tailored to suit your agency’s needs.

Why Mindfulness for Law Enforcement?

Evidence-based mindfulness skills training is a wellness intervention that is increasingly being used in law enforcement to help officers “de-escalate volatile situations, improve community relations, and better handle the demands of their jobs.” (Suttie, 2016)

It has been amazing to watch and feel the personal and departmental growth in law enforcement officers and departmental staff from working with the InStill Mindfulness group. Doing meditation and mindfulness work is helping us be better cops, supervisors, and humans. It truly is a practice for everyone.

—Captain R. Scott Schwarzer, Radford City PD

Research with law enforcement officers, first responders, and military personnel found that training in mindfulness skills helped address the following issues:

LIFE EXPECTANCY

Violanti, et al observed a mean difference in life expectancy of nearly 22 years between male LEOs and the general public. They proposed that some of the reasons for this likely include “stress, shift work, obesity, and hazardous environmental work exposures.” Mindfulness training has been shown to:
- Grupe, et al found that mindfulness training reduces PTSD symptoms and improves stress-related health outcomes in police officers.
- In a systematic review of 19 studies, Carrière, et al found that mindfulness-based interventions “are effective in reducing weight and improving obesity-related eating behaviours”; and
- Anderson, et al surmised that “reducing chronic and acute stress [through mindfulness training] will improve an officer’s ability to remain in the present moment, focused on the tasks at hand, which in turn should enhance performance and long term mental and physical health.”
MORALE

Morale and its counterpart, retention, is becoming ever more of a challenge for law enforcement agencies. USA Today reported in 2015 that open positions for LEOs in California had increased 600% in five years, and this issue appears to be becoming ever more global. Mindfulness training can help address key issues that impact morale like burnout and wellbeing:
- Williams, et al found that “difficulty identifying feelings and mindfulness are key variables in predicting the wellbeing and mental health” in LEOs; and
- Kaplan, et al determined that increased mindfulness is “related to increased resilience and reduced burnout” in first responders.
USE OF FORCE

One of the causes of diminishing morale has been increased public scrutiny. More than ever before, it is imperative that LEOs conduct themselves with the highest professional standards in public. The most prominent issue relating to this is the use of force.
- Andersen & Gustafsberg found that LEOS trained in several mindfulness-based techniques showed “better physiological control, situational awareness, and overall performance, and made a greater number of correct use of force decisions than officers in the control group.”
- Lueke & Gibson determined that mindfulness training reduces implicit age and race bias; and
- Ruedy & Schweitzer concluded that several causes of unethical behavior “are exacerbated by a lack of attention and awareness” that mindfulness training can address.

How It Works

We offer mindfulness training programs that will be individually tailored to suit your agency’s needs. Classes can be conducted live online or in-person with our teachers. Pricing will be negotiated accordingly.