Police Officer Beliefs and Attitudes towards Intimate Partner Violence: A Systematic Review “If it goes horribly wrong the whole world descends on you” Police Officers’ Fear, Vulnerability, and Powerlessness when Responding to Head Injury in Domestic Violence

Abstract

Intimate partner violence (IPV) has a high global prevalence with a range of consequences including death and serious injuries for victims. Police officers are often the first professional group to come into contact with IPV victims and have a number of roles in supporting victims. Significant changes to policing practice and policy have been made in the last three decades, yet little is known about how these changes may have influenced police attitudes. This systematic review aimed to summarise and synthesise the literature across three databases, exploring police attitudes to IPV in several Western countries. Nine papers met the search criteria and were included within the review. A narrative synthesis of the findings found themes of frustration, victim blaming attitudes, stress in IPV policing and focus on prosecution in IPV cases. Findings suggest reflective practice and interventions for compassion fatigue could support officers in policing IPV. Future research is needed to explore the experiences of female police officers, and Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) police officers. Domestic violence (DV) victims face significant barriers to accessing healthcare. This is particularly concerning in cases of brain injury (BI), which is difficult to diagnose and risks severe long-term consequences for DV victims. Police may be able to identify head injury (HI) and signpost victims to healthcare. This research investigated potential barriers to police supporting victim health needs by exploring police attitudes towards DV and considering how police interpret and respond to stories of HI in DV victims. Individual interviews were conducted with 12 police officers from forces in South and Central England. This included the use of a clinical vignette. Thematic analysis highlighted three global themes: ‘seesaw of emotions’, ‘police vulnerability’, and ‘head injury is fearful’. Police officers’ vulnerability to external blame was the predominant influence in their responses to HI. Recommendations suggest integrating psychological approaches in police training to improve police/victim relationships and promote police officer resilience and wellbeing.