| Police officers are often confronted with violent criminals and subjected to physical assaults resulting in injury and sometimes death to the officer. The problem was that police officers are often insufficiently prepared to respond to dangerous situations. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to determine how law enforcement officers perceive the value of the implementation of a karate training program in the work environment for reducing injuries from perpetrator assaults. Focus group interviews (n = 10 police officers), individual interviews (n = 1 police supervisor), and an open-ended survey (n = 22 police officers) were administered in Los Angeles County, California. Participants viewed a 15-minute video of a karate demonstration prior to participation. Data were processed using qualitative software. The conclusion from this study was that the participants overwhelmingly supported karate training for officers. Specifically, the police officers were dissatisfied with the defensive tactics training that they currently received, felt that karate training would be a useful supplement, and would be interested in participating in karate training. However, the participants voiced concern that the use of the more lethal karate techniques in place of their existing techniques may bring up legal questions. It was recommended that liability issues need to be resolved and that pilot programs should be implemented in which law enforcement personnel receive karate training. In addition, this study should be replicated in other geographic areas in order to determine the extent to which the results from this study are generalizable or specific to Los Angeles County, future researchers should employ quantitative survey methods in order to develop an understanding of police officers perceptions of karate training in a larger, broader sample, and studies should be performed in which the legal implications of karate training for police officers should be assessed. |
