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Autism Training for Law Enforcement Officers: Perceptions From the Field.

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Title: Autism Training for Law Enforcement Officers: Perceptions From the Field.
Authors: Kenney, Christine K. (AUTHOR), Sreckovic, Melissa A. (AUTHOR), Wallace, Matthew (AUTHOR), Debbaudt, Dennis (AUTHOR)
Source: Journal of Autism & Developmental Disorders. Feb2026, Vol. 56 Issue 2, p819-829. 11p.
Subjects: Police education, Curriculum, Intellect, Qualitative research, Human services programs, Research funding, Autism, Course evaluation (Education), Evaluation of human services programs, Descriptive statistics, Confidence, Thematic analysis, Professional employee training, Research, Asperger's syndrome
Geographic Terms: United States
Abstract: Autistic individuals and law enforcement officers are likely to engage under various circumstances within the community. Therefore, law enforcement officers require training on supporting those with autism and better understanding autistic behaviors. Aims for this study include: (1) developing and delivering high quality professional development on autism spectrum disorder (ASD) to support autistic individuals during encounters with law enforcement officers, and (2) examining how law enforcement officers respond to the professional development session. For this study a four-hour, in-person training on autism for law enforcement officers was developed. Law enforcement officers (n = 27) attended the training session. Subsequently, participants completed an open-ended survey gathering perceptions related to the topics covered in the training, thoughts on the feasibility and applicability of content, and transfer to future safety encounters involving autistic individuals. Data was analyzed using a qualitative approach including concept driven thematic coding with constant comparisons. Data yielded themes on experiences with the autistic community, strategies learned from the training, thoughts on specific content, and feedback on the training format. Overall, law enforcement officers reported they felt better prepared, more knowledgeable on the autistic community, and believed the strategies were feasible and applicable to the field. These findings point to the importance of training on autism and that law enforcement officers found it was time well spent. Future directions include examining how training transfers to practice in the field and ways to connect law enforcement officers with the autistic community outside of emergency response. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Copyright of Journal of Autism & Developmental Disorders is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
Database: Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection
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  Data: Autism Training for Law Enforcement Officers: Perceptions From the Field.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="JN" term="%22Journal+of+Autism+%26+Developmental+Disorders%22">Journal of Autism & Developmental Disorders</searchLink>. Feb2026, Vol. 56 Issue 2, p819-829. 11p.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Police+education%22">Police education</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Curriculum%22">Curriculum</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Intellect%22">Intellect</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Qualitative+research%22">Qualitative research</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Human+services+programs%22">Human services programs</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Research+funding%22">Research funding</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Autism%22">Autism</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Course+evaluation+%28Education%29%22">Course evaluation (Education)</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Evaluation+of+human+services+programs%22">Evaluation of human services programs</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Descriptive+statistics%22">Descriptive statistics</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Confidence%22">Confidence</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Thematic+analysis%22">Thematic analysis</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Professional+employee+training%22">Professional employee training</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Research%22">Research</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Asperger's+syndrome%22">Asperger's syndrome</searchLink>
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  Data: Autistic individuals and law enforcement officers are likely to engage under various circumstances within the community. Therefore, law enforcement officers require training on supporting those with autism and better understanding autistic behaviors. Aims for this study include: (1) developing and delivering high quality professional development on autism spectrum disorder (ASD) to support autistic individuals during encounters with law enforcement officers, and (2) examining how law enforcement officers respond to the professional development session. For this study a four-hour, in-person training on autism for law enforcement officers was developed. Law enforcement officers (n = 27) attended the training session. Subsequently, participants completed an open-ended survey gathering perceptions related to the topics covered in the training, thoughts on the feasibility and applicability of content, and transfer to future safety encounters involving autistic individuals. Data was analyzed using a qualitative approach including concept driven thematic coding with constant comparisons. Data yielded themes on experiences with the autistic community, strategies learned from the training, thoughts on specific content, and feedback on the training format. Overall, law enforcement officers reported they felt better prepared, more knowledgeable on the autistic community, and believed the strategies were feasible and applicable to the field. These findings point to the importance of training on autism and that law enforcement officers found it was time well spent. Future directions include examining how training transfers to practice in the field and ways to connect law enforcement officers with the autistic community outside of emergency response. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
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  Data: <i>Copyright of Journal of Autism & Developmental Disorders is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract.</i> (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
PLink https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=pbh&AN=191290392
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      – Type: doi
        Value: 10.1007/s10803-024-06587-w
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      – Code: eng
        Text: English
    PhysicalDescription:
      Pagination:
        PageCount: 11
        StartPage: 819
    Subjects:
      – SubjectFull: Police education
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Curriculum
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Intellect
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Qualitative research
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Human services programs
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Research funding
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Autism
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Course evaluation (Education)
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Evaluation of human services programs
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Descriptive statistics
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Confidence
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Thematic analysis
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Professional employee training
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Research
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Asperger's syndrome
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: United States
        Type: general
    Titles:
      – TitleFull: Autism Training for Law Enforcement Officers: Perceptions From the Field.
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            NameFull: Kenney, Christine K.
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            NameFull: Sreckovic, Melissa A.
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            NameFull: Wallace, Matthew
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              M: 02
              Text: Feb2026
              Type: published
              Y: 2026
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