..

This is the sixt of a six part exercise to read behavior of both sides of a conversation using an incident where police officers were called to a home where there was the report of a potential break in.

(Video Source)

The Workout

  • Context: In the following video, two police officers talk with a man who was reported being seen outside of a home while carrying a shovel.  In this sixth part, the first officer who spoke with the man has returned from her patrol car to and approaches while the second officer and man engage in a confrontation.
  • Because of the length of the video, this exercise will be broken up into a six-part series.
  • Task 1:First, assess the man being contacted’s behavior and identify the observations that support that assessment before the confrontation.
  • Task 2: Second, assess the police officer’s behavior and identify the observations that support that assessment before the confrontation.  View this from the perspective of the man being contacted.
  • Task 3: Is the dominance displayed by the officer (as likely perceived by the man) at the same intensity as in previous clips or displayed at a different intensity?
  • Note: We acknowledge that the assessment in Task #3 is HIGHLY subjective.  We aren’t in the officer’s head and haven’t talked to him.  We are basing this assessment (when it is different than the behavior observed in Task #2) on the observations and behaviors we can collect in this video.
  • Write your answers on a sheet of paper before viewing our answers

View Our Answers

  • Task 1: The Man (Initially): The Dominant Cluster
      • Makes an accusation: He makes a phone call and says to the person on the other end “come to my mom’s house, the police is over here and they harassing me.”
      • Says to the officer: “you can’t grab my phone like that.”
  • Task 2: The Police Officer (As assessed by man): The Dominant Cluster
    • The officer has come to the top of the steps, blocking him in.
    • Makes contact with the man, grabbing his phone.
    • Fights the man to get control.
  • Task 3: Yes, displayed at a higher intensity.
    • The officer has moved from verbal and non-verbal dominance to physically controlling the man.
  • Add a comment with the assessments that you made, but that we didn’t make, so that other viewers can benefit from your analysis as well.

Enhance The Workout

  • Repeat
    • Were they any behavioral indicators given off by the man on the porch that contradict the dominant assessment or was the man displaying consistent dominance?
  • Reflect
    • Was this the logical conclusion of the event or were there other options that the police officer could have taken to gain control over the man and the situation?
    • Note: we aren’t saying that the officer should have done something different, the question is to simply think about other potential courses of action the officer could have taken to accomplish the goal so that you have the ability to adapt in any given situation.
  • Act
    • In a conversation this week, identify two ways that you could deal with a confrontational conversation before it begins.
    • Start with one approach, and then shift to get a feel for the challenge and the comfort that comes with practicing a change in behavior.

Related Content: