From pain compliance to leverage-based control: Evidence of reduced use of force severity and injuries following police training

Abstract

Training is a frequently requested response to contentious police use of force incidents. Yet limited research evaluating use of force training has been conducted and most has focussed on officer perceptions of training, as opposed to the impact of training on use of force in the field. We address this gap through evaluating a 120-h Response to Resistance and Aggression training developed and implemented by the Saint Paul Police Department. By integrating leverage-based control and de-escalation techniques, this program sought to reduce the severity of force used by police officers. Results from machine learning models indicate that training did reduce reliance on pain-compliance techniques. Adjusting for factors including encounter, subject, and officer characteristics, training was associated with an estimated 3.3 percentage point reduction in officer injuries and a 1.3 percentage point reduction in significant subject injury. These findings contribute to the evidence base surrounding effective police training programs.