Officers' Best Friend? Exploring the Effect of Dogs on Organizational Support and Use of Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs)

Monday, October 16, 2023

12:30 PM – 1:20 PM PST

Location: Room: 11A

Submitter and Speaker(s)

Kenneth Quick

Adjunct Lecturer/Doctoral Candidate
John Jay College of Criminal Justice
Pipersville, Pennsylvania, United States

Speaker(s)

Mark Wachter

Inspector/Commanding Officer, Health and Wellness Section
New York City Police Department, New York
New York, New York, United States
Ronald Thomas

Detective, Employee Assistance Unit
New York City Police Department, New York
New York, New York, United States

The presentation will present the findings of a three-phase, quasi-experimental design study that evaluated the effectiveness of professionally trained dogs in improving police officer perception of organizational support and their willingness to use or recommend an employee assistance program. Data were collected at 76 NYPD precincts and during officer firearms training. In addition, four varying perspectives of the NYPD’s therapy dog program will be shared including the academic researcher who evaluated the program, the police executive who designed the program, a canine handler, and a peer counselor. Recommendations for best practices will be shared with police executives that may be implemented in agencies of varying sizes to maximize program effectiveness.