Deck 4: Recruitment and Selection of Police Officers

Question 1

All of the following are considered to be basic personnel levels in police departments EXCEPT for ______.

A) the recruit level
B) the entry-level
C) the supervisory level
D) the chief level

Answer 1

A

Question 2

It typically takes law enforcement officers ______ years to move up the ranks to police chief.

A) 5-10
B) 10-15
C) 15-20
D) 20-25

Answer 2

C

Question 3

All of the following are considered to be desirable when hiring officers EXCEPT for ______.

A) demographic characteristics
B) personal biases
C) socialization skills
D) educational abilities

Answer 3

B

Question 4

Which of the following was identified as being a department's main expense?

A) travel
B) training
C) personnel
D) uniforms and equipment

Question 5

Which generation is anticipated to comprise the majority of police officers in the United States by the year 2020?

A) Millennials
B) baby boomers
C) Generation Y
D) Generation X

Question 6

According to the text, who is now supervising the baby boomers?

A) Millennials
B) Generation X
C) Generation Z
D) Generation Y

Question 7

Baby boomers were exposed to which of the following?

A) discipline via military
B) increased civil disobedience
C) affirmative action laws
D) modern liberalism

Question 8

Millennials are considered to be all of the following EXCEPT for ______.

A) confident
B) passionate
C) self-centered
D) idealistic

Question 9

Millennial police applicants can be characterized by which of the following?

A) working independently
B) performing insignificant work
C) being flexible in their daily environment
D) engaging in activities consistent with self-centeredness

Question 10

Who typically selects the person who will fill the position of chief of police?

A) city managers and city council
B) sergeants and operations personnel
C) captains and lieutenants
D) internal affairs

Question 11

Once selected for an entry-level position, police officers ______.

A) are screened for promotions or training programs
B) are automatically promoted to supervisory level
C) continue to work patrol for the rest of their lives
D) are automatically assigned to the grunt work

Question 12

Service your career by "working the line" is consistent with police officers who ______.

A) want to get promoted to supervisory
B) wish to remain on patrol doing traditional police work
C) are only there for a short period of time
D) want to get promoted to chief

Question 13

Which of the following statements about affirmative action is true?

A) Employers with fewer than 150 employees do no need to adopt procedures against discrimination.
B) The burden of demonstrating that requirements are job related falls on the employer.
C) It is not a violation of affirmative action for an employer to discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation.
D) It does not really exist in police work.

Question 14

Which of the following requirements would NOT would prevent charges from being filed against a police department for discriminatory hiring practices?

A) accurate testing of qualifications relevant to the duties of the job
B) consistent testing of qualifications relevant to the duties of the job
C) valid requirements of the job
D) job requirements that change frequently

Question 15

Which of the following is an example of an immutable characteristic?

A) skin color
B) gender
C) weight
D) nail color

Question 16

All of the following amendments were identified as prohibiting the deprivation of employment rights without due process EXCEPT for ______.

A) the 1st Amendment
B) the 3rd Amendment
C) the 5th Amendment
D) the 14th Amendment

Question 17

______ occurs when requirements for hiring and promotion are not bona fide and when a disparate impact affects members of a minority group.

A) Bias
B) Discrimination
C) Stereotyping
D) Prejudice

Question 18

______ involves an employment policy or practice that adversely impacts a person or group.

A) Discrimination
B) Disparate impact
C) An immutable characteristic
D) Affirmative action

Question 19

Treating people differently because of their race, gender, religion, or national origin is referred to as ______.

A) bias
B) profiling
C) discrimination
D) stereotyping

Question 20

An agreement related to an employer achieving a balance in terms of race, ethnicity, and gender in the workforce is referred to as a(n) ______.

A) immutable characteristic
B) affirmative action
C) consent decree
D) disparate impact

Question 21

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits job discrimination based on all of the following characteristics EXCEPT for ______.

A) age
B) disability
C) religion
D) educational level

Question 22

A(n) ______ is an exception to the prohibition against basing hiring decisions on religion, race, sex, age, or national origin, if such basis is shown to be a requirement necessary to the specific functions of the job.

A) consent decree
B) immutable characteristic
C) bona fide occupational qualification
D) status test

Question 23

Applications with all of the following disabilities are covered by the ADA EXCEPT for ______.

A) epilepsy
B) AIDS
C) flu
D) paralysis

Question 24

During which of the following stages of the employment process does the ADA limit inquiries to non-disability qualifications of applicants?

A) post-conditional offer stage
B) working stage
C) retirement stage
D) application/interview stage

Question 25

The text identified which of the following personnel expenses for any organization?

A) advertising
B) uniforms
C) transportation
D) testing

Question 26

Which of the following statements is true about the objective of advertising to attract police applicants?

A) The objective is to attract every person possible in hopes that the best applicants will gain more interest through the process.
B) The objective is to attract those and only those who are qualified and interested in being police officers.
C) The objective is not to attract too many applicants due to the costs of the hiring process, so it is often done in a discreet fashion.
D) The objective is to attract more lateral-transfer officers, women, minorities, and people with disabilities.

Question 27

Which of the following was NOT identified as a way that agencies can reduce some of the costs of recruitment?

A) recruiting and selecting for multiple positions at once
B) charging nominal fees for the application
C) making the application shorter
D) creating detailed and thorough advertising campaigns

Question 28

Which of the following is an example of targeted recruiting?

A) advertising in the classifieds
B) holding orientations on college campuses
C) posting job announcements all over the city
D) word of mouth

Question 29

Which part of the hiring process has come under scrutiny?

A) physical agility and strength
B) cognitive abilities
C) interpersonal skills
D) educational requirements

Question 30

All of the following are cited benefits to increasing the number of women serving in a police department EXCEPT for ______.

A) reducing the likelihood of use of excessive force by officers
B) reducing the rate of police officer turnover in a department
C) assistance in implementing community-oriented policing
D) improving law enforcement's response to violence against women

Question 31

All of the following are considered elements of institutional discrimination EXCEPT for ______.

A) biased testing procedures
B) unfair hiring practices
C) the use of quotas to meet certain minimums of women and minority employees in the workplace
D) unfair selection of job assignments

Question 32

______ refers to unfair testing procedures, hiring practices, job assignments, and education requirements.

A) Reasonable accommodation
B) Institutional discrimination
C) Bona fide occupational qualification
D) Consent decree

Question 33

Multiple hurdles are favored when which of the following is true about the job?

A) training is short and inexpensive
B) the consequences of error in hiring are high
C) essential skills are compensated for
D) there are a lot of applicants

Question 34

U.S. citizenship is an example of a ______.

A) mental test
B) status test
C) physical test
D) test of morality

Question 35

All of the following would add bonus points to the raw score of a police applicant's exam EXCEPT for ______.

A) military service
B) an associate's degree
C) a bachelor's degree
D) a certification in first aid

Question 36

Which of the following is considered to be a critical part of the testing process?

A) background investigation
B) polygraph examination
C) medical examination
D) physical test

Question 37

______ are used to assess a candidate's honesty and propensity for counterproductive behavior on the job, such as drug use or theft.

A) Polygraph tests
B) Integrity tests
C) Medical tests
D) Status tests

Question 38

All of the following are tests of morality EXCEPT for ______.

A) drug tests
B) polygraph examinations
C) medical exams
D) background investigations

Question 39

Which of the following is true about background investigations?

A) They are used by a small number of agencies and replaced by the polygraph.
B) A major purpose is to determine the applicant's anxiety level when he or she knows Facebook will be checked.
C) A background check cannot indicate a person's competency, motivation, and personal ethics.
D) They are short and do not take a very long time.

Question 40

All of the following may be discovered in a background check EXCEPT for ______.

A) dishonorable discharge from the military
B) bankruptcy filing
C) medical records
D) passwords for social media accounts

Question 41

What is predicted to be the status of drug testing within police departments in a few years?

A) used more frequently than it is now
B) used less frequently than it is now
C) removed as a procedure for screening police applicants and current police officers
D) administered by civilian employees instead of fellow officers

Question 42

The galvanic skin response is utilized in ______.

A) polygraph examinations
B) vision examinations
C) physical examinations
D) medical examinations

Question 43

Who is often responsible for administering oral examinations to police officer candidates?

A) members of the personnel department or civil service commission members
B) members of the Independent Police Review Authority
C) members of the Fraternal Order of Police
D) the chief of police

Question 44

Field supervisors are selected based on all of the following EXCEPT for ______.

A) years of experience
B) performance evaluations
C) written examinations
D) physical tests

Question 45

All of the following tests are typically used in the selection of supervisors within police departments EXCEPT for ______.

A) medical examinations
B) updated background investigations
C) physical endurance and strength testing
D) assessment centers

Question 46

In order to determine a supervisory candidate's ability to motivate his or her potential subordinate officers, which of the following would best assess skills in this task?

A) a counseling session
B) a group discussion
C) written problem solving
D) in-basket exercises

Question 47

______ measure(s) the person's administrative and decision-making abilities through day-to-day administrative activities.

A) Written problem-solving tests
B) In-basket exercises
C) Group discussion
D) Oral presentations

Question 48

All of the following are noted to be benefits of an assessment center EXCEPT for ______.

A) enabling a department to determine weak points in its own training processes
B) being a morale booster among police officers within the department
C) strengthening ties to the community in which a police department is situated
D) predicting good performance in the candidates it determines are most qualified for a position

Question 49

All of the following are desirable skills for a police chief EXCEPT for ______.

A) an ability to view oneself as part of a management team
B) exceptional marksmanship
C) administrative skills
D) possession of a master's degree

Question 50

Recruitment and selection are critical to the success of any agency.

Question 51

Negative media coverage of high-profile incidents involving the police has motivated some people to enter the law enforcement profession.

Question 52

A large percentage of promotions in police agencies are internal, but some agencies hire from outside at all levels.

Question 53

Productive recruitment and selection procedures are critical only at the chief level.

Question 54

Generation X individuals are confident, idealistic, eager, and passionate about their quality of life.

Question 55

Technoliteracy refers to a highly refined level of understanding and skill in manipulating the various technologies present in today's workplace.

Question 56

Generation X came of age when the world was less welcoming and concerned about children than the atmosphere for raising the subsequent generation.

Question 57

A police officer is generally subjected to the recruitment and selection process of hiring only once in his or her career.

Question 58

Civilians, as opposed to police officers, conduct the majority of the recruitment and selection process.

Question 59

The Office of Personnel Management included a clause that allows for discrimination based on sexual orientation in certain occupations.

Question 60

Affirmative action programs are intended to prevent discrimination in current hiring and promotional practices, but they may not be used to remedy past discrimination in hiring and promotions.

Question 61

Skin color is an example of an immutable characteristic.

Question 62

Requiring that employees speak only English on the job may violate Title VII unless the organization shows that the requirement is necessary to conduct business.

Question 63

A bona fide occupational qualification can be an age limit in certain occupations, and police work is one of those occupations.

Question 64

If a hiring manager of a police department asks an applicant about his current illegal drug use, this is a legal question under the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Question 65

Once a conditional offer of employment has been made, employers are still not able to ask about disabilities.

Question 66

It can cost thousands of dollars to recruit police officers.

Question 67

Both younger and older applicants are increasingly using the Internet to assist them in their job searches.

Question 68

It is suggested, but not required, that police departments advertise available positions as encouraging women and minorities to apply.

Question 69

One strategy for increasing diversity is to ensure that women and members of minority groups are part of the hiring process.

Question 70

Higher levels of female officer representation are associated with organizations that emphasize community policing and have higher education requirements, more incentives and benefits, no physical fitness screening criteria, and no collective bargaining rights.

Question 71

Attracting female applicants may be more difficult than retaining them once hired.

Question 72

Biased testing procedures are an example of institutional discrimination.

Question 73

Status tests have to do with changeable factors such as U.S. citizenship, possession of or ability to obtain a driver's license, residency, service in the military, educational level, and age.

Question 74

Prior military service does not earn applicants preference points.

Question 75

In reference to psychological tests, psychologists and psychiatrists are expected not only to screen out the "bad" but also to be able to screen in the "good" candidates.

Question 76

A major purpose of the background investigation is to determine the applicant's honesty as reflected by the information provided on the application form and in subsequent communications.

Question 77

It is no longer legal to administer polygraph exams to police officer candidates as part of the screening and testing process.

Question 78

Oral interviews of police applicants are used by most agencies, although the format varies a good deal from department to department.

Question 79

The way we look (dress, skin color, gender, etc.) and act (eye contact, handshake, degree of self-confidence expressed) affects our daily interactions, but because police oral boards are completely objective, it does not affect the interviewer's opinions.

Question 80

Police departments no longer ask questions to test the applicant's knowledge of legal, moral, and ethical issues related to police work because applicants haven't learned those things yet.