Liu Chao, Lin Li-Jen, Zhang Kang-Jie, Chiou Wen-Ko
School of Journalism and Communication, Hua Qiao University, Xiamen 361021, China.
General Education Center, Mindfulness Meditation Center, Ming Chi University of Technology, New Taipei 243303, Taiwan.
Behav Sci (Basel). 2025 Jul 4;15(7):909. doi: 10.3390/bs15070909.
Police officers work in high-stress environments that demand emotional resilience, interpersonal skills, and effective communication. Occupational stress can negatively impact their motivation, conflict resolution abilities, and professional effectiveness. Loving-Kindness Meditation (LKM), a mindfulness-based intervention focused on cultivating compassion and empathy, has shown promise in enhancing prosocial attitudes and emotional regulation. With the rise of short video platforms, digital interventions like video-guided LKM may offer accessible mental health support for law enforcement. This study examines the effects of short video app-guided LKM on police officers' mindfulness, public service motivation (PSM), conflict resolution skills (CRSs), and communication skills (CSSs). It aims to determine whether LKM can enhance these psychological and professional competencies. A randomized controlled trial (RCT) was conducted with 110 active-duty police officers from a metropolitan police department in China, with 92 completing the study. Participants were randomly assigned to either the LKM group (n = 46) or the waitlist control group (n = 46). The intervention consisted of a 6-week short video app-guided LKM program with daily 10 min meditation sessions. Pre- and post-intervention assessments were conducted using several validated scales: the Mindfulness Attention Awareness Scale (MAAS), the Public Service Motivation Scale (PSM), the Conflict Resolution Styles Inventory (CRSI), and the Communication Competence Scale (CCS). A 2 (Group: LKM vs. Control) × 2 (Time: Pre vs. Post) mixed-design MANOVA was conducted to analyze the effects. Statistical analyses revealed significant group-by-time interaction effects for PSM (F(4,177) = 21.793, < 0.001, η = 0.108), CRS (F(4,177) = 20.920, < 0.001, η = 0.104), and CSS (F(4,177) = 49.095, < 0.001, η = 0.214), indicating improvements in these areas for LKM participants. However, no significant improvement was observed for mindfulness (F(4,177) = 2.850, = 0.930, η = 0.016). Short video app-guided LKM improves public service motivation, conflict resolution skills, and communication skills among police officers but does not significantly enhance mindfulness. These findings suggest that brief, digitally delivered compassion-focused programs can be seamlessly incorporated into routine in-service training to strengthen officers' prosocial motivation, de-escalation competence, and public-facing communication, thereby fostering more constructive police-community interactions.
警察工作在高压力环境中，这需要情绪恢复力、人际交往能力和有效的沟通能力。职业压力会对他们的工作积极性、冲突解决能力和职业效能产生负面影响。慈爱冥想（LKM）是一种基于正念的干预措施，专注于培养同情心和同理心，已显示出在增强亲社会态度和情绪调节方面的潜力。随着短视频平台的兴起，像视频引导的LKM这样的数字干预措施可能为执法人员提供便捷的心理健康支持。本研究考察了短视频应用程序引导的LKM对警察的正念、公共服务动机（PSM）、冲突解决技能（CRS）和沟通技能（CSS）的影响。其目的是确定LKM是否能增强这些心理和专业能力。对来自中国一个大城市警察局的110名在职警察进行了一项随机对照试验（RCT），其中92人完成了研究。参与者被随机分配到LKM组（n = 46）或等待列表对照组（n = 46）。干预措施包括一个为期6周的短视频应用程序引导的LKM项目，每天进行10分钟的冥想练习。干预前后使用几种经过验证的量表进行评估：正念注意觉知量表（MAAS）、公共服务动机量表（PSM）、冲突解决方式量表（CRSI）和沟通能力量表（CCS）。进行了一个2（组：LKM组与对照组）×2（时间：干预前与干预后）的混合设计多变量方差分析来分析效果。统计分析显示，在PSM（F(4,177) = 21.793， < 0.001，η = 0.108）、CRS（F(4,177) = 20.920， < 0.001，η = 0.104）和CSS（F(4,177) = 49.095， < 0.001，η = 0.214）方面存在显著的组×时间交互效应，表明LKM组参与者在这些方面有所改善。然而，在正念方面未观察到显著改善（F(4,177) = 2.850， = 0.930，η = 0.016）。短视频应用程序引导的LKM改善了警察的公共服务动机、冲突解决技能和沟通技能，但并未显著增强正念。这些发现表明，简短的、以数字方式提供的以慈悲为重点的项目可以无缝融入常规在职培训，以增强警察的亲社会动机、缓和冲突能力和面向公众的沟通能力，从而促进更具建设性的警民互动。
