Carla L. MacLean, Veronica Stinson, E. Kevin Kelloway and Ronald P. Fisher
Industrial incident investigations determine what caused an adverse workplace event so that preventative measures can be instituted and reduce the risk of such incidents happening…
Abstract
Purpose
Industrial incident investigations determine what caused an adverse workplace event so that preventative measures can be instituted and reduce the risk of such incidents happening again. Investigators gather evidence from multiple sources in an investigation and one such source is the people in, or around, the industrial incident. The purpose of the current study is to examine if recall strategy could affect eyewitnesses' recollections of a workplace incident.
Design/methodology/approach
The current study is a 3 (Post‐Event Context: Think, Filler, Discuss)×2 (Incident Investigation Form: Psychologically‐Based vs. Standard Investigation Form) between‐subjects factorial design. Participant‐witnesses watched a simulated videotaped workplace incident (n=196) then either: thought about the event, discussed it with fellow witnesses, or engaged in an unrelated task. Subsequently, participants recalled the details of the adverse event on an incident report form: a Standard Investigation Form or a form based on principles of cognition (Psychologically‐Based Form).
Findings
Compared to the Standard Investigation Form condition, eyewitnesses in the Psychologically‐Based Form condition recalled significantly more pieces of accurate information at a reduced accuracy rate. Post‐event context produced no significant differences in participant‐witnesses' reporting.
Practical implications
The data suggest that incorporating some principles of memory and cognition into incident investigations have the potential to enhance accurate recollection of a workplace event.
Originality/value
This study is among the first to apply psychological theory to enhance eyewitness reports of an industrial incident. In so doing this research contributes to recent literature that explores eyewitness recall for industrial events.
Details
Keywords
Vera A. Klinoff, Vincent B. Van Hasselt and Ryan A. Black
There is a burgeoning body of evidence showing that police officers are at a higher risk of committing homicide-suicide than civilian counterparts. The purpose of this paper is to…
Abstract
Purpose
There is a burgeoning body of evidence showing that police officers are at a higher risk of committing homicide-suicide than civilian counterparts. The purpose of this paper is to provide an update and expansion of previous work by Violanti (2007) on homicide-suicide in law enforcement families.
Design/methodology/approach
Police-perpetrated homicide-suicide cases were obtained through an online forum dedicated to topics related to domestic violence in police families. A total of 43 police-perpetrated homicide-suicides was identified and reviewed for presence/absence of variables similar to those examined by Violanti (2007), with the addition of new factors. χ2 analyses were performed to test for inter-study differences in proportions on variables of interest.
Findings
Results indicated a significantly smaller proportion of homicide-suicide incidents perpetrated by State officers. The remainder of the variable frequencies remained relatively consistent between studies. Of particular importance, domestic violence and divorce/estrangement were salient precursors in these cases.
Research limitations/implications
Data were obtained from an online forum and media publications, which may not be regulated for accuracy and may contain biased data.
Practical implications
The current results, combined with the prior research, underscore the need for prevention programs and departmental policies that: increase the accessibility of mental health services, increase the availability of services for victims of police-involved intimate partner violence, and stress the enforcement of current domestic violence laws.
Social implications
Results indicate that domestic violence is still a significant problem in law enforcement personnel, with the potential for lethal consequences.
Originality/value
To the authors knowledge, this is only the second study involving a formal analysis of police-involved homicide-suicide cases.
Details
Keywords
Adejoke Obirenjeyi Oluyase, Duncan Raistrick, Yasir Abbasi, Veronica Dale and Charlie Lloyd
The purpose of this paper is to examine the prescribed psychotropic medications taken by newly referred people with a range of substance use disorders (SUD) who attend a…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the prescribed psychotropic medications taken by newly referred people with a range of substance use disorders (SUD) who attend a specialist community addiction service.
Design/methodology/approach
Anonymised data on newly referred people (n=1,537) with SUD attending a specialist community addiction service for their first episode of treatment between August 2007 and July 2010 were obtained from the database of the service. Data were cleaned and the percentage of people taking prescribed psychotropic medications at their first episode of treatment was calculated.
Findings
More than half (56.1 percent) of people attending the service were taking prescribed antidepressants and anxiolytics at their first episode of treatment whilst 15.2 percent of people were taking prescribed antipsychotics. Alcohol and opioids were the primary referral substances for 77.4 percent and 15.2 percent of people respectively. People referred for “other” substances (cannabis, stimulants, sedatives, hallucinogens, solvents and polydrug use) made up the remaining 7.5 percent and had the highest percentage of prescribed psychotropics (antipsychotics=47 percent, antidepressants and anxiolytics=64.3 percent) compared to those referred for alcohol and opioids (p<0.0005).
Originality/value
To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study of psychotropic prescribing among people with a range of SUD in the UK. The high prevalence of psychotropic prescribing raises questions about the appropriateness of these prescriptions and calls for scrutiny of prescribing practice in this group of people.