Those who supervise volunteers in law enforcement settings need to pay close attention to these characteristics if they want volunteers to be effective and comfortable. Security requires not only careful screening but making arrangements for volunteers to work in secured areas so that they are free to come and go. Supervisors also have to prepare volunteers for the atmosphere, which is fast paced and high energy. People talk quickly, move quickly and use police jargon to communicate. Competition and control are strongly ingrained in the police personality, and as a result those traits show up strongly in the organization as a whole.
Police are by nature suspicious.
This may be hard for new volunteers who are trying to work with them and maybe make a few friends. Another challenge for new volunteers is adjusting to police humor and understanding the necessity for it. Police humor is quick, mocking, sometimes crude and can border on the macabre. While it is funny, its real purpose is to relieve stress. Our volunteers have witnessed the angst of a seasoned police officer as he dealt with the aftermath around a victim of an unspeakable crime.