Most cops have a soft spot for kids and jump at the opportunity to work with young people. Some of our best community-policing investments come from police officers working with youth programs like after school sports or study groups, internships, teen volunteering, and officers visiting schools.
However, not all police officers have a knack for working with this population so here are a few guidelines to consider for officers or departments stepping out to encourage positive interactions with young adults.
1. Treat them as adults whenever possible. Science tells us that the brain isn’t fully developed until about the age of 23. Popular culture portrays teenagers as hormone fuelled smart alecks who are the bane of a parent’s existence. The invention of the “teenager” for commercial purposes has embedded a false template in our minds.
However, if you look past the previous 75 years of American life, you’ll find that young people have had very grown-up responsibilities through most of history. The capacity of a teen for responsible behavior is huge. Let them step up.
2. Give them goals for growth. If there is one great fault of American culture it is our lack of a defining moment for adulthood. Back on the family farm it might be when you got to drive the tractor without supervision. For traditional Jewish families it’s a bar mitzvah.
For me it was a moment of insight when I was 10 after a family emergency that caused me to realize what I could handle. For many of America’s youth it is not a positive demarcation celebrated by family and community, but rather a lonely experiment in risky behavior. Boy Scouts of America has used progressive responsibility, ceremony, and ranks of achievement successfully for over a hundred years.
Those principles are worthy of emulation in any youth program.
3. Train to hear outcries. Suicide, partner violence, sexual assault, substance abuse, and depression are all part of the mix of human life. While these things challenge adult populations when they occur in the adolescent the availability of support and even the vocabulary to express them is often unknown. Confessions are often cryptic. Listen intentionally and be ready to make a counseling referral when appropriate.
4. Create clear integrity guidelines for officers and teens. Police departments that give youth work responsibilities without briefing and on-going integrity reinforcement do so at their peril. Emotional entanglements are not unusual and those dynamics can lead to risk taking by mentors as well as teens. Say them out loud, in writing, and often.
Our best hope for maintaining professionalism in policing is the development of intelligent, aware, and drug free young people. Time flies! The 12-year-olds of today will be wearing your department’s badge sooner than you think. What kind of person do you want them to be?
