WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Department of Justice’s Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office) announced today a new partnership with the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology, Inc. (SIOP). Awareness and implementation of industrial-organizational psychology findings can help law enforcement agencies cultivate safer, more effective workplaces, which can then lead to enhanced public safety and increased community engagement.

Industrial-organizational (I-O) psychology is defined as the scientific study of human behavior in organizations and the workplace. It focuses on deriving principles of individual, group and organizational behavior and applying this knowledge to the solution of problems at work.

“The COPS Office has invested many resources over the years toward the goal of developing and maintaining successful law enforcement agencies, including the critical areas of recruitment, hiring, and training, as well as promoting officer safety and wellness,” said Robert Chapman, Acting Director of the COPS Office. “Our partnership with SIOP is another important step in those efforts to build healthy law enforcement organizations that have the added advantage of leading to stronger relationships with the community.”

Through this partnership, the COPS Office and SIOP will work together to support organizational effectiveness in law enforcement agencies by showcasing evidence-based workforce solutions in areas such as hiring, recruitment, leadership development, training, and interventions to reduce stress and improve decision-making. The partners will leverage their respective networks and communication tools to help law enforcement agencies throughout the nation directly connect with I-O experts and learn about their research findings, including solutions to enhance operations and efficiencies, which can ultimately improve public engagement.

SIOP is a community of nearly 10,000 members worldwide with a common interest in promoting the science, practice, and teaching of I-O psychology. SIOP has convened a working group of I-O researchers and practitioners to promote evidence-based workforce findings that can improve law enforcement agency operations, including recruitment, retention, onboarding, training, and more.

The COPS Office is the federal component of the Department of Justice responsible for advancing community policing nationwide. The only Department of Justice agency with policing in its name, the COPS Office was established in 1994 and has been the cornerstone of the nation’s crime fighting strategy with grants, a variety of knowledge resource products, and training and technical assistance. Through the years, the COPS Office has become the go-to organization for law enforcement agencies across the country and continues to listen to the field and provide the resources that are needed to reduce crime and build trust between law enforcement and the communities served. The COPS Office has invested more than $14 billion to advance community policing, including grants awarded to more than 13,000 state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies to fund the hiring and redeployment of more than 135,000 officers.

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