| Dr.
James T. Reese is an internationally recognized
author, lecturer, and consultant in the areas
of stress management, motivation, threat and risk
assessments, and workplace violence. He has authored
and co-edited seven books and is an editor for
the new Journal of Threat Assessment. He has addressed
representatives of more than 300 Fortune 500 companies,
law enforcement agencies, hospitals, and other
businesses. A former Lieutenant and decorated
combat veteran of Vietnam, he served as an FBI
Agent for 25 years retiring in 1995 as the Assistant
Unit Chief of the Behavioral Science Unit, FBI
Academy. For 18 years he taught stress management,
criminology, abnormal psychology and profiling
and was adjunct faculty with the University of
Virginia. During his assignment to the FBI Academy,
he also profiled criminal matters (a "Mind
Hunter" as portrayed by Psychology Today).
Dr. Reese has provided expert testimony before
the United States Congress on Stress and addressed
President George Bush's Council on Integrity and
Efficiency. He serves as the Director of Violence
Prevention for the Crisis Care Network, Inc. He
is president of James T. Reese and Associates,
an international behavioral sciences and management-consulting
firm headquartered in Lake Ridge, Virginia, USA.
He has addressed audiences and consulted throughout
the world. He is Board Certified in Domestic Violence,
Stress Management, School Crisis Response, Emergency
Crisis Response, and Traumatic Stress. His video
is entitled "Dr. Jim Reese on Integrity and
Courage" and his audiocassette series is
entitled "Six Keys to Stress-Free Living™".
Dr. Reese is a Fellow of The American Academy
of Experts in Traumatic Stress and the Academy
is privileged to have him serve on the Board of
Scientific & Professional Advisors.
JSV: You keep quite busy as a lecturer, consultant
and author. Can you tell me about the various
roles and/or positions that you currently hold?
JTR: Yes, fortunately I do keep very busy. As
you may recall, I returned your call about this
interview from the Hawaiian Islands. Last year
also took my company to Hong Kong, Japan, Canada,
and Europe as well as more than 25 states. I am
the sole proprietor of James T. Reese and Associates
and James T. Reese European Associates. We are
an international behavioral sciences and management
consulting firm serving both government and private
industry on a wide array of topics including workplace
violence, stress management, executive stress,
ethics-based leadership, motivational keynotes
and more. Aside from keynote presentations, criminal
profiling, and corporate and law enforcement training,
my time is spent consulting with organizations
and corporations regarding workplace violence
issues, from policy and procedure development
to assisting in the termination of employees.
Time is also spent doing assessments, or profiles,
of employees whose behavior is threatening, harassing,
or violent. I have spoken to audiences on a wide
range of topics, to include school violence at
state superintendents conferences, domestic violence
at the Crystal Cathedral in Garden Grove, California,
"Six Keys to Stress Free Living"
at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas and the Tropicana
in Atlantic City. I have also provided expert
testimony on law enforcement stress before the
United States Congress, and addressed President
George Bush's Council on Integrity and efficiency.
In addition to this, James T. Reese and Associates
was chosen by the Crisis Care Network, Inc., Grand
Rapids, Michigan (888-736-0911) to direct their
violence prevention program. Lyle Labardee, A.A.E.T.S.,
their CEO, has created the country's leading,
nationwide private sector provider of on-site
response to violence and traumatic workplace incidents,
currently serving over 2,500 companies. In that
capacity, I share a 24 hours a day, 7 days a week
call center (hot line), answered by Masters level
clinicians. I am also in the process of contracting
with additional corporations regarding an ongoing
consulting relationship with regards to stress
management, threat assessments and workplace violence
issues. All of the above grew out of experiences
and knowledge I was able to gain during my 25
years as an FBI Agent.
JSV: I understand that you are a founding member
of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) National
Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime. How
did this program develop?
JTR: I was an Agent in the Behavioral Science
Unit and was therefore invited to be one of the
founders of the FBI's National Center for the
Analysis of Violent Crime. This was a team effort
put together by the professional support persons
and Agents assigned to the Behavioral Science
Unit at the FBI's Academy in Quantico, VA. For
years we had been accepting "qualified"
homicide cases, serial rapes, and other crimes
from law enforcement for the purposes of "profiling."
Among the purposes for the National Center was
to provide order and structure to the process
and insure that we gained the maximum benefits
from the information obtained. It is still in
place and the men and women of the FBI are still
in the trenches, working day in and day out to
solve the most bizarre crimes of the century,
as well as the every day homicides that plague
this nation. These are really talented and dedicated
people, both agents and professional support personnel,
who endure the images of death daily in an effort
to solve crimes and put criminals where they can
no longer harm anyone. I was pleased to have co-authored
the first article on profiling in the FBI Law
Enforcement Bulletin entitled "A Psychological
Assessment of Crime: Profiling" (Ault and
Reese, 1980). This was an attempt to let people
know what profiling was all about. The process
has become much more sophisticated and now there
are people in the FBI whose job is dedicated solely
to receiving these unsolved crimes from law enforcement
and attempting to profile them. These are typically
serial crimes, bizarre homicide cases, child abductions,
and the like. There are requirements concerning
the cases the FBI will accept for profiling. This
is due to the volume of crime that exists. The
FBI's Training Division at Quantico is in the
best position to provide details concerning that
criterion.
JSV: For 25 years, you served as a Special Agent
of the FBI and ultimately became the Assistant
Unit Chief of the prestigious Behavioral Science
Unit at the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia.
How did you become involved with the FBI?
JTR: It was 1971. Vietnam was behind me. I had
graduated from Arkansas State University in 1968
with a Bachelors Degree in Social Science. My
first set of military orders following my graduation
and subsequent commission as an officer in the
Army made it clear that I would be spending a
year in Vietnam. I arrived in Vietnam in April
of 1969 and served in the Mekong Delta. Little
did I know that this would be my first encounter
in a long line of stress-related encounters that
would shape my professional career and my life.
More than 100 ambushes and dozens of helicopter
assaults later, I left the Republic of South Vietnam.
Upon my return to the United States, I was determined
to never work again for anyone who told me what
to do, what to wear, or how to act. That determination
didn't last long. The country, and J. Edgar Hoover,
needed FBI Agents! My brother, Ron, had just ended
his tour as an officer in the United States Navy
and was accepted by the FBI as an Agent. He encouraged
me to apply prior to my discharge from the Army.
I applied and the rest is history. The FBI, like
any job, had its ups and downs. One of the more
humorous, and subsequently memorable, events during
my early career involved efforts to respond to
my first bank robbery. The Bureau car radio squawked
"All units, we have a bank robbery in progress",
and the address was given. My first FBI car was
a 1968, two-toned green, Rambler. It was equipped
with a portable, hand-held magnetic "Kojak"
light. In attempting to get to the bank quickly,
I was unable to get it to stay on top of the vinyl
roof. I thought I was in a cartoon. I questioned
the Bureau's attention to details.
As early as 1974 I knew that I wanted to be a
faculty member at the FBI Academy; to have a voice
in training this nation's law enforcement elite;
to learn the skills of a profiler and make a difference
in the world. I earned a Masters Degree in 1976
at American International College as I worked
as an FBI Resident Agent in Springfield, Massachusetts
and was transferred to the FBI Academy as an instructor
in the Behavioral Science Unit in 1978. I would
remain there for 18 years until my retirement
in 1995. During that time, I was accepted into
the doctoral program at The American University
and, going to school at night, earned a Ph.D.
in 1987.
JSV: What is a Criminal Personality Profiler?
In that capacity, are there any cases that stand
out in your memory? What were your connections
with the film The Silence of the Lambs and the
title "Mind Hunter"?
JTR: On the latter point, the movie The Silence
of the Lambs was filmed, in part, in the Behavioral
Sciences Unit and other locations at the FBI Academy.
The writers, producers, and directors apparently
sought information, academy props, and advice
to make the movie realistic. It was based on what
criminal profilers were doing. That is where the
behavioral science unit portion of the film was
developed with "Hannibal Lechter" as
the focus. The name "Mind Hunters" was
given to us by Psychology Today magazine. They
had written an article about those of us who made
up the profiling section at the time. The article
featured a "centerfold" photograph and
it featured me and the other profilers. We were
all sitting around a desk as if we were examining
photographs of a crime scene. Across the top of
the picture was the title "Mind Hunters."
The article was about those of us in the Behavioral
Science Unit who were doing profiling. The FBI
has made great strides in their knowledge of criminal
behavior and criminal profiling since that article,
and since I left in 1995.
With regard to profiling, there are certain clues
at a crime scene, which, by their very nature,
do not lend themselves to being collected or examined.
How does one collect love, rage, hatred, fear,
jealousy, irrationality, or other intangibles?
Clues left at a crime scene may be of inestimable
value in leading to the solution of a crime; however,
they are not necessarily items of physical evidence,
per se. While these items may be present at a
crime scene, the untrained eye will inevitably
miss them. Nothing can take the place of a well-executed
investigation; however, the use of psychology
to assist in the assessment of a crime is an additional
tool, which the law enforcement officer should
use in solving crimes. The purpose of the psychological
assessment of a crime scene is to produce a profile;
that is, to identify and interpret certain items
of evidence at the crime scene which would be
indicative of the personality type of the individual
or individuals committing the crime. As Webster
would say, "It is a short, vivid biography
briefly outlining the most outstanding characteristics
of the subject." The goal of the profiler
is to provide enough information to investigators
to enable them to limit or better direct their
investigations. For example, in one case, a profile
provided enough information that officers recalled
an individual whom they had already questioned
that fit the profile description. When they returned
to the individual, he confessed. It should be
noted that, in this particular case, we assisted
in providing interview techniques.
During one particular summer, a woman in a suburban
city on the east coast reported to the police
that she had been raped. After learning the facts
of this case, the investigating officer realized
this was the seventh rape within the past two
years wherein the same modus operandi was used.
There were no investigative leads remaining and
no suspects. The incidents reports of each of
the rapes, together with transcripts of the interviews
of the victims were brought to the Behavioral
Science Unit where I looked them over. Between
what I discovered in the reports and the assistance
of others in the unit, it was determined that
the rapes were probably committed by the same
person and described him as a white male, 25 to
35 years of age, divorced or separated and working
at a marginally skilled job, high school education,
poor self-image, living in the immediate area
of the rapes, and as being involved in acts of
voyeurism ("Peeping Tom"). It was likely
that the police had spoken to this man in that
many times these types of "prowlers"
are questioned by police and released. Based upon
the FBI information, 40 suspects were developed
in the neighborhood. They narrowed their investigation
to one and focused on him. He was arrested within
the week. You can't look at an entire population.
We try to narrow the suspects down. Lives can
be saved.
During 1979, I was assigned to teach a homicide/profiling
school near Newport News, VA. After teaching all-day
and retiring for the night, the phone rang about
11:00pm. It was the deputy chief of the Newport
News Police Department, a man who had, ironically,
been a student in my class that day. He reported
that the body of a young woman had been found
in a motel room in Newport News. She had been
shot in the stomach with a high-powered rifle.
The body was handcuffed (apparently post-mortem)
and the door to the motel room where she was found
was barricaded from the inside. There appeared
to be no evidence of robbery, sexual assault,
or other motive. She was a manager in housekeeping
and apparently surprised the murderer when she
entered the room. The murderer had escaped through
a rear bathroom window and fled into the woods
behind the motel. Prior to my involvement in the
case, a police officer and his police dog were
sent into the woods to flush out the murderer.
The murderer confronted them at gunpoint and ordered
them out of the woods. They immediately left the
woods and are lucky to be with us today. I was
taken to the scene and asked to do a profile or
assessment of the subject. I had been teaching
the Deputy Chief that day about homicides and
people who keep diaries and the like. The subject
had left a diary and a sea bag full of clothes
at the motel room. The diaries provided psycholinguistic
clues concerning the subject's personality. I
decided that it was not a good idea to go into
the woods at night. The subject either is or was
a Marine and probably mentally ill. While not
qualified to diagnose, we believed him to be paranoid
schizophrenic based upon the writings found in
the diaries in his sea bag. We learned early on
however, to not label people with mental health
terms. Therefore, our profiles simply described
the individuals and their expected behavior. I
suggested to the police to wait for the first
light of the morning to enter the woods. I emphasized
that they should continue during the night to
call him out with bullhorns but that he would
not surrender. He did not. Someone suggested lighting
up the area with helicopters. I recommended that
they not do that due to his paranoia and delusional
thinking about Vietnam. At approximately 5:45am,
a SWAT team entered the woods. They got within
50 feet of the subject who stood up and fired
on them. The subject was shot and died after about
30 days hospitalization. He was a former marine,
he had dug about 6 foxholes, had 351 rounds of
ammunition for his rifle, and was in full marine
corps gear; helmet, flack jacket, web belt, canteen,
the works. The profile worked and perhaps some
officers are alive today because of it.
JSV: I know, Jim, that personality profiling has
gained a presence in many school districts around
the country.
JTR: Yes, Joe, and I have had the pleasure of
addressing many of the school systems. I try,
as many others do, to help teachers, administrators,
and students understand the phenomena of violence,
the appropriate policies to put in place and the
procedures to deal with violent, or potential
violent, acts. Unfortunately, more security cameras
cannot solve the problem. While the idea of surveillance
is important, it may simply be a means to document
that which occurs rather than prevent the occurrence.
A combination of physical security and mental
preparedness is essential. It is important to
note, however, that many students match any given
"profile" at any given time. The key
is to not pigeonhole or categorically suspect
someone of wrongdoing simply because of a profile.
A profile, historically, has been a set of characteristics
and behaviors of someone who is unknown, versus
an "assessment" of someone who is known.
Much in the same way investigative hypnosis can
be used as an investigative tool, so too, profiling
should be used as only a tool and considered in
light of other pieces of information (especially
in schools). Some of the early warning signs of
potential violence in children, which would be
added to any given profile, may include continued
problem behavior, comments regarding problems
in their family or dysfunction within the family,
implied and/or verbal threats to other students
and faculty, continual tardiness and an increase
of absences, changes in "normal" behavior
patterns, withdrawal, and other indicators, to
include a perceived reduction in self worth. By
the way, I think that the Academy should be very
proud of the advancements made in the area of
school crisis response. The Academy is a leader
in the provision of information concerning school
crisis intervention from what I can see with your
publication (Dr. Reese is referring to A Practical
Guide for Crisis Response in Our Schools: Fourth
Edition recently published by the Academy).
JSV: As you are aware, The American Academy of
Experts in Traumatic Stress is a multidisciplinary
network of professionals representing over 200
professions in the health-related fields, emergency
services, criminal justice, forensics, law, business
and education. Many of our organization's members
must respond on the "front lines" of
risk and danger as a part of their occupation.
Are there unique stressors associated with working
for the FBI?
JTR: Yes, there are unique stress factors working
for the FBI, or any emergency service provider
for that matter. While it has always been considered
one of the most stressful occupations in the world,
law enforcement doesn't hold the copyright on
stress, nor has it been universally and empirically
proven to be the most stressful occupation in
the world. The uniqueness of the stress in police
work, as well as in the FBI, revolves around the
responsibility for people, the dangers associated
with the job, the long, irregular hours, the pressures
placed upon the employees to perform at their
maximum capacity 24-hours a day, and the need
to control their emotions on a full-time basis.
I call this "Image Armor", the need
to always look in control. Among other issues
leading to stress is the uniqueness of emergency
service personnel. For example, we are very authoritative,
we are risk-takers, we never make mistakes, we
are hypervigilant, cynical, suspicious, pessimistic,
have negative attitudes about people, rarely talk
about our feelings to others and are always looking
for action. Add to that the fact that we seem
to be less willing to socialize and one can readily
see how this impacts upon us as individuals as
well as our support system.
JSV: What factors led to your development of the
FBI's Stress Management Program and Psychological
Services Program?
JTR: I am pleased to say that I was chosen to
monitor the FBI Psychological Services Program
when it began in 1980. I piloted the program when
the FBI hired its first psychiatrist. Today, the
FBI has an Employee Assistance Unit with trained
Employee Assistance Coordinators (FBI employees)
in every field office in the FBI, a Psychological
Services Program and a Critical Incident program
where employees involved in critical incidents
go to the Academy at Quantico to attend an in-service
program, which offers assistance to them. The
attendees ultimately can learn to assist others
as peer support employees. I am also proud to
say that I was just asked to speak at the next
national meeting of the FBI's Employee Assistance
Program. I hope they will always feel free to
call on me. They have really done more with that
program than I ever imagined. They should all
be very proud of their accomplishments. It ranks
as one of the best Employee Assistance Programs
in the worldwide law enforcement community. It
should also be recognized and understood that
these people are trying to provide emotional and
psychological support, not to just a city or a
department, but to thousands of employees, from
our field offices in the United States to the
many legal attaches located throughout the world.
They have the full support of the Director of
the FBI and that will help to insure the ongoing
success of the program. Any program without that
level of support is doomed to fail.
I assisted in developing the overall stress management
program as a result of my exposure to seeing death
and dying through profiling on a day-to-day basis
and experiencing the interruptions this job presents
to families. In August of 1979, I was to learn
how important a support system was to this profession.
One particular evening, my wife, Sandy and our
(then two-and-a-half year old) daughter, Jamie
and I were preparing to go out shopping. I can
still picture my wife, putting a jacket on my
daughter, when our phone rang. It was the office
of an Executive Director of the FBI. There had
been a commercial airline hijacking at SeaTac
(Seattle Tacoma International Airport). Headquarters
wanted some behavioral scientists, "profilers"
to go to the command center in Washington, DC
to assist in appraising the subject and the situation.
It was stated that he had a bomb in his briefcase
and was holding 55 people on the commercial jet,
hostage. The plane was on the tarmac. Two other
profilers were also called and met me in Washington
DC at FBI Headquarters. The hijacker's demands
were $100,000, a parachute and the jet. We worked
with Seattle PD SWAT, the Port Authority, FBI
SWAT, local and state police, and the FBI negotiator
throughout the night. It ended about 3am with
the hijacker settling for a "rental car and
a cheeseburger". As he deplaned to get the
car he had demanded, FBI SWAT members, hidden
under the plane, apprehended him and his briefcase.
We had earlier predicted that there was no bomb.
There was no bomb found. We went home to sleeping
families. He went to jail, only to be released
at a later date to be killed in the commission
of another commercial airline hijacking.
In 1980, I traveled to Jacksonville, Florida with
another agent to teach an advanced criminology
school. During the week we were there, we arranged
to interview Arthur Frederick Goode, III. Goode
was a convicted child abductor / killer who was
incarcerated at Raeford State Prison in Starkville,
Florida awaiting execution. We interviewed him
for six hours about his homosexual, homicidal
behaviors with his victims. He would kidnap young,
12 years old or so, force them to engage in sexual
behaviors and then murder them. He would then
write disgustingly descriptive letters to their
parents, describing what he did to their children.
We were talking to him to try to learn more about
men who do these types of crimes. While I didn't
expect to see any remorse, what I did see surprised
me. A cold, calculated response to even the most
sensitive questions regarding the murders. Upon
leaving the cell, Goode reinforced what we knew
about psychopathic behavior. In an effort to assert
his ego and recapture control at the last minute,
he asked us (with a grin on his face) as we left
death row, "Do you have any little boys at
home?" In law enforcement, sometimes the
hardest thing to do is to do nothing. Contrary
to the thoughts that were running through my head
at the time, all I could do was leave. That is
the type of stress you take home with you.
There was one particularly stressful occasion
when I was profiling a case in which all of the
children in a family were killed. Each was shot
gunned in the face in their beds. In an effort
to come up with a profile, I and a few other agents
spent an inordinate amount of time staring at
the photos of these "faceless" children.
A few nights later, I walked into my daughter's
room to tuck her in bed. She was lying in bed
with her back to me. I couldn't leave the room.
I had to walk around her bed to make sure she
was all right. In law enforcement, this is referred
to as "vicarious victimization." It
was based upon that type of occurrence, and the
stories told to me by other profilers and police
officers regarding stress, that encouraged me
to accept an invitation to write a chapter in
a book by another former FBI Agent / profiler,
Robert "Roy"' Hazelwood. His co-edited
book is entitled Practical Aspects of Rape Investigation:
A Multidisciplinary Approach, and my chapter is
entitled "Rape Investigators: Vicarious Victims."
Trauma response providers (e.g., many of the members
of the A.A.E.T.S.) know that one can only experience
so much of this stimuli without eventually incorporating
some of it into one's life. Such vicarious victimization
led me, and my colleagues, to develop the stress
management program. I ultimately helped develop
post-critical incident policies in England and
Northern Ireland, and I continue, today, to build
stress management programs for corporations, law
enforcement, and a variety of organizations.
JSV: I understand that you have lectured to several
hundred Fortune 500 companies. Some of the topics
that you have presented include "6 Keys to
Stress-free Living," "Stress Management
- Facing the Millennium," "Workplace
Violence/Wellness" and "The Greatest
Difficulty in Life - Choice." What made you
focus on these areas and how have they been received
by your audiences?
JTR: I believe that if you are not in control
of your life then something else is. These topics
you just spoke of are always received with the
same enthusiasm with which I deliver them. I truly
believe that these principles work. I receive
letters and emails almost on a daily basis in
which someone expresses gratitude for the message.
I try to emphasize the need for balance. It is
important for one to do one's job well. Also,
it is important to "get a life." I emphasize
the need for balance in spiritual, familial, personal,
and occupational endeavors. I have lectured on
executive stress management to representatives
of more than 300 Fortune 500 companies. I recently
spoke to the second most powerful executive in
one of the world's five largest corporations regarding
controlling corporate stress both among executives
and other employees. I have had the pleasure of
addressing members of the National Football League
as well as presenting at the NATO Advanced Studies
Institute in Sciathos, Greece, and the Royal Ulster
Constabulary in Belfast. From chief executives,
to plant foreman, to rank and file, there is no
audience on this planet that does not relate to
the stress of everyday existence. I consider it
my job, as well as a privilege, to provide people
with tools to cope with the stress and remind
them of the joys in life. Without exception, corporate
employees, firefighters, and law enforcement officers
alike report that their job satisfaction improves,
their production increases and their home life
takes on a new and more meaningful purpose. It
is a great message for the corporate world as
we tackle the challenges of the new millennium
and…it decreases workplace violence!
JSV: You have become a Fellow of The American
Academy of Experts in Traumatic Stress as well
as Board Certified by the Academy in Emergency
Crisis Response, Domestic Violence and Stress
Management. What made you pursue these credentials
offered through the Academy=s Board Certification
Programs in traumatic stress specialties?
JTR: I pursued earning the credentials of the
A.A.E.T.S. because it was the first, and perhaps
only, professional organization that was more
"inclusive" than "exclusive."
Most groups are trying to find reasons to keep
you out. This organization is quite obviously
the opposite. It seeks to find those who are in
the business of helping others and providing them
with credentials and support that they could not
find elsewhere. Also, my clients have the right
to believe that a competent authority has examined
my background and activities and have decided
my credentials demonstrate expertise in a particular
discipline. Anyone can call himself or herself
an expert. The A.A.E.T.S. asks their membership
to provide details to support this claim and then
they either agree or disagree. It is not a rubber
stamp process. Fortunately, the Academy has examined
my credentials and approved several board certifications.
I enjoy the relationship with the A.A.E.T.S. and
have encouraged many to apply for membership.
JSV: Tell me about Worlds at War, Minds at Peace.
What motivated you to develop this publication?
JTR: My upcoming book, Worlds at War, Minds at
Peace, is still in the editing stage. Due to the
demands placed upon my company regarding violence
in the workplace and stress management, I have
not been able to bring it to a conclusion. In
that publication, I talk about stress and stress
management from things I had experienced including
combat in Vietnam and my FBI work. Perhaps within
this year it will be complete. Aside from the
book, there is currently a video that is obtainable
and being used in many law enforcement agencies
and critical incident stress management teams.
It is entitled "Dr. Jim Reese on Integrity
and Courage" (410) 740-0065. However, my
hopes of helping people manage stress are riding
high on the soon to be released audiocassette
signature series tapes and workbook entitled "Six
Keys to Stress-Free Living: A Guide to Recapturing
Control of Your Life™" (800) 425-0308. This
is being produced by Shield International, Provo,
Utah and will be ready for release within the
next 60 days. My products and publications will
also eventually be available on my website at
www.jamestreese.com. In this new audiotape series,
I explore the unique challenges we face each day
in our jobs, families, and in our stress-filled
society. The six keys offer significant insights
into the causes and signs of stress and the challenges
associated with a stress-filled life. In the tapes,
I provide practical and motivational strategies
for combating stress, dealing effectively with
change and moving toward stress-free living. The
books that I had written or co-edited while in
the FBI are currently out of print. I am hopeful
that the FBI will see fit to continue to make
them available due to the wealth of information
which all of the authors of the chapters provided.
They have been the foundations of law enforcement
psychology since the first was published in 1986.
It seems wrong to keep this information from those
who could use it. It would appear that the information
was valuable before, and is no less valuable now.
I am continually asked how copies can be obtained.
Perhaps at some point the government will see
fit to continue to provide the information in
these books to those who could use it. For those
who are interested, the books are Psychological
Services for Law Enforcement (Reese & Goldstein,
1986); Police Psychology: Operational Assistance
(Reese and Horn, 1988); Critical Incidents in
Policing (Reese, Horn, & Dunning, 1991); Law
Enforcement Families: Issues and Answers (Reese
& Scrivner, 1994); and Organizational Issues
(Reese & Solomon, 1995). I also wrote the
first and most complete History of Psychological
Services in Law Enforcement Organizations in the
United States, (Reese, 1987).
JSV: As you are aware, The American Academy of
Experts in Traumatic Stress recognizes that traumatic
events are an unfortunate part of the human experience
that professionals and workers from many fields
work with on a regular basis. What do you see
as the major advantage of an organization such
as the Academy that is dedicated to increasing
awareness and, ultimately, improving the quality
of intervention with survivors of such events
across such an eclectic group?
JTR: I asked myself that question when I joined
A.A.E.T.S. When you, Joe, first approached me
some years ago, to become a member of this fine
organization, I realized that there needed to
be some standardization. There has to be some
place to go to obtain information, share information
and network with others in a multidisciplinary
fashion. When I look at your board of advisors
and your membership, the only word that comes
to mind is "eclectic" and the organization
has certainly covered all the bases. Based upon
the unfortunate trauma that humans experience,
the organization has increased awareness (this
can be seen by the academy's growing, diverse
membership). The membership genuinely shows concern
for victims and because of this, victim providers
benefit on an international level. Also, your
publication, Trauma Response® is outstanding
and I believe that every one of your members always
looks forward to receiving it in the mail.
JSV: As an esteemed member of the Board of Scientific
and Professional Advisors of The American Academy
of Experts in Traumatic Stress, are there any
suggestions or concluding comments that you could
offer with regard to helping survivors of traumatic
stress?
JTR: The greatest assets of any trauma response
provider seem to be those of understanding, caring,
relating on a realistic level and availability.
I have found that in the emergency services, especially
law enforcement since that is my background, the
one item they must have in their lives is control.
Traumatic incidents tend to take that control
from them. Responders can't control events or
many of the outcomes of events but they absolutely
must control their emotions. I try to let survivors
know exactly why I am there, what the purpose
of our time together is, what they can expect,
and a fairly good idea of what I will be asking
them about. Many have told me that this approach
has given them a sense of immediate control and
has helped stabilize them. They do not want to
be examined or studied. They do not want to sit,
patiently waiting for a "loaded" question
about their feelings. They simply want to be able
to express their feelings in a confidential environment
where they are not ashamed or embarrassed and
in a setting where they do not risk losing status.
This may be the most important qualifier for many
who seek help. Add to this their need to believe
that you are actually in a position to help them,
not just another person to tell their story to.
Here, the Six Keys to Stress-Free Living™ are
alive and well: challenge, choice, change, courage,
control, and commitment. Together, these six keys
are some of the greatest tools available to assist
survivors of traumatic stress.
JSV: Tell me about the international behavioral
sciences and management consulting firm, "James
T. Reese and Associates" and the Professional
Speaker's Consortium. Can you provide contact
information for our members?
JTR: James T. Reese and Associates can be contacted
at 3262 Chancellor Drive, Lake Ridge, VA USA 22192-3357
or via our website at www.jamestreese.com. Our
telephone number is 703-551-4101 or fax us at
703-494-8934. We provide motivational keynotes,
lectures, and workshops together with seminars
on stress management, leadership, anger management,
burnout prevention, team building, mentoring,
workplace violence prevention and more. Our services
also range from walking a potentially dangerous
person or employee out of a building following
a threat, to assisting in the assessment of behavior
and the construction of separation agreements.
This type of assistance was just provided to a
Midwest Fortune 500 company that employed a person
who vowed to "come back and kill all the
women." I was contracted to be on site and
this matter was resolved safely with all parties
satisfied that justice had been served (including
the subject). We also create custom-made, client-centered
zero tolerance policies for violence in the workplace,
as well as procedures to consistently and legally
enforce such a policies (as we recently prepared
for a government agency, to include its thousands
of employees and hundreds of buildings). Moreover,
James T. Reese and Associates has been in business
since 1995, incorporating 27 years of previous
experience. We enjoy what we do and believe that
we are helping increase the quality of people's
lives, while increasing the corporate bottom line.
I hope some of your readers will contact us to
discuss the possibility of serving them. We are
excited about the future and we continue to provide
additional services as our clientele expands and
their needs diversify.
The Professional Speaker's Consortium has been
in existence for about a year. It allows James
T. Reese and Associates to provide speakers, presenters,
seminar leaders, and consultants on a wide range
of topics. These are individuals who have voiced
an interest in working with James T. Reese and
Associates and who have demonstrated the skills
necessary to be the very best in the business
at what they do. Our experts include corporate
executives, former military leaders, authors,
police, firefighters, human resource administrators,
psychologists, psychiatrists, nurses, employee
assistance professionals, and many other disciplines.
If you're looking for a speaker, call us.
JSV: Jim, you have given our members some very
interesting things to think about. The Academy
is glad to have you aboard.
JTR: Joe, the pleasure is mine. I am extremely
honored to have been interviewed for Trauma Response®
and am proud to be a member of the Academy.
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