• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Home
  • About
  • The Magazine
  • Events
  • Partners
  • Products
  • Contact
  • Jobs and Careers
  • Advertise
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • Subscribe
American Police Beat

American Police Beat Magazine

Law Enforcement Publication

  • Home
  • Leadership
    • Setting ethical expectations early in an officer’s career
      Go that extra mile with a smile
      Improving the promotional process for supervisors
      Developing an ethics-centered police department
      Leadership without the family factor is not leadership
  • Topics
    • Leadership
      • Setting ethical expectations early in an officer’s career
        Go that extra mile with a smile
        Improving the promotional process for supervisors
        Developing an ethics-centered police department
        Leadership without the family factor is not leadership
    • Editor’s Picks
      • Off duty, but never off guard
        The tyranny of memories
        Meeting training needs on a limited budget
        Empowering through experience
        Getting ahead of the story
    • On the Job
      • What’s with all the gear?
        Reckless elegance
        No case too cold
        Summer is coming
        Securing the Texas border one K-9 team at a time
    • Labor
      • Critical incidents and waiting woosah
        Insufficient police staffing continues throughout the U.S.
        The righteous battle
        Recruitment and retention
        Austin police chief aims to end officer shortage as recruitment...
    • Tech
      • How local police departments can combat cybercrime
        Your website is your front desk
        Telegram investigations
        Florida sheriff’s office deploys cutting-edge forensic tool to...
        A new chapter for Utah law enforcement
    • Training
      • Training vs. practice: Improve or maintain?
        Off duty, but never off guard
        Meeting training needs on a limited budget
        Be a thermostat, not a thermometer
        Duty knives: Practical or just “tacticool”
    • Policy
      • Michigan Supreme Court: Marijuana odor alone no longer justifies...
        Milwaukee P.D. and schools clash over SROs
        Seattle Police Department launches new plan to curb violent crime
        Buffer-zone law blocked in Louisiana
        Dakota’s Law: Pensions for police dogs?
    • Health/Wellness
      • Keeping work at work and home at home
        Avoiding the road to burnout
        Texas sheriff’s office hit with series of suicides
        The tyranny of memories
        “Why are you mad at me?”
    • Community
      • San Diego Honors Fallen Officer Austin Machitar with Park Renaming
        Battle of the Badges baseball game to support injured Missouri officer
        Temple University Police celebrate 7-year-old’s support with...
        A local problem with a statewide solution
        From traffic stops to tip-offs: Iowa officer becomes basketball...
    • Offbeat
      • Not eggzactly a perfect heist
        Pizza … with a side of alligator?
        Wisconsin man charged with impersonating Border Patrol agent twice in...
        Only in California?
        Durango, Colorado, police hop into action after unusual 9-1-1 call
    • We Remember
      • Honoring Fallen Heroes
        What’s with the white chairs?
        The pain and sorrow of loss
        A cop and his car
        A dream of remembrance
    • HOT Mail
      • The War on Cops Continues Unabated
  • On the Job
    • What’s with all the gear?
      Reckless elegance
      No case too cold
      Summer is coming
      Securing the Texas border one K-9 team at a time
  • Labor
    • Critical incidents and waiting woosah
      Insufficient police staffing continues throughout the U.S.
      The righteous battle
      Recruitment and retention
      Austin police chief aims to end officer shortage as recruitment...
  • Tech
    • How local police departments can combat cybercrime
      Your website is your front desk
      Telegram investigations
      Florida sheriff’s office deploys cutting-edge forensic tool to...
      A new chapter for Utah law enforcement
  • Training
    • Training vs. practice: Improve or maintain?
      Off duty, but never off guard
      Meeting training needs on a limited budget
      Be a thermostat, not a thermometer
      Duty knives: Practical or just “tacticool”
  • Policy
    • Michigan Supreme Court: Marijuana odor alone no longer justifies...
      Milwaukee P.D. and schools clash over SROs
      Seattle Police Department launches new plan to curb violent crime
      Buffer-zone law blocked in Louisiana
      Dakota’s Law: Pensions for police dogs?
  • Health/Wellness
    • Keeping work at work and home at home
      Avoiding the road to burnout
      Texas sheriff’s office hit with series of suicides
      The tyranny of memories
      “Why are you mad at me?”
  • Community
    • San Diego Honors Fallen Officer Austin Machitar with Park Renaming
      Battle of the Badges baseball game to support injured Missouri officer
      Temple University Police celebrate 7-year-old’s support with...
      A local problem with a statewide solution
      From traffic stops to tip-offs: Iowa officer becomes basketball...
  • Offbeat
    • Not eggzactly a perfect heist
      Pizza … with a side of alligator?
      Wisconsin man charged with impersonating Border Patrol agent twice in...
      Only in California?
      Durango, Colorado, police hop into action after unusual 9-1-1 call
  • We Remember
    • Honoring Fallen Heroes
      What’s with the white chairs?
      The pain and sorrow of loss
      A cop and his car
      A dream of remembrance
  • HOT Mail
    • The War on Cops Continues Unabated
  • About
  • The Magazine
  • Events
  • Partners
  • Products
  • Contact
  • Jobs and Careers
  • Advertise
  • Subscribe
Search

Health/Wellness

Not a bad apple; a bruised one

Dr. Stephanie Conn Published September 20, 2021 @ 11:33 am PDT

>Dreamstime.com/Steve Allen

A former captain of mine, now a chief at another department, recently asked me how we can better screen officers in the pre–employment process. He seemed to be concerned about officers leaving the job, going off on stress leave or getting in trouble while on the job. I doubt he is the only administrator who is concerned about employee retention during a time when officers are leaving the profession in droves. 

My response was likely not what he expected. I told him that it wasn’t the inadequacy of screening officers that was the problem. It was our failure to take care of them once they were hired. In short, it wasn’t that a bad apple made it through the process. It was that a good apple, maybe green at first, became bruised over time. I’ll offer some background for this belief. 

When I was an officer, I was “voluntold” to be on a discipline consistency committee in my agency. I wasn’t happy about it. Now, I’m glad that I had that experience. I learned that officers have problems for one of three key reasons: 1) they’re a bad apple — the person who was not screened out of the profession but should have been; 2) they’re a green apple — an officer who is new and made a mistake based on lack of experience and/or training; or 3) they’re a bruised apple — the officer is hurting from the bumps and bruises of the job and/or personal life. Their decision-making was compromised, and they needed help. My work as a first responder clinician supports these categorizations.

Bad apples

Occasionally, a bad apple will make it through the background and psychological screening process. It is likely very rare. The signs are usually there from the beginning. Unfortunately, the signs aren’t always heeded until something terrible happens. I’ve worked with a bad apple. He cut corners and dodged calls from the start. He didn’t last long. 

Green apples 

Typically, green apples are officers who are new to policing or new to their assignment. Interviewing them about the problematic behavior should readily reveal if they understand their role expectations and have the competency to perform them. Some will not openly reveal their uncertainty about how to handle a call, as they may have what Dr. Carol Dweck, author of Mindset,1 refers to as a “fixed mindset.” Individuals with a fixed mindset are afraid to say that they don’t understand something, believing that it says something negative about their intellect or overall goodness as a person. The individual may think they’re not a good officer if they have to ask questions that others don’t seem to be asking. Individuals with a “growth mindset” are comfortable with not knowing everything, as they know that it is quite normal. They are open to disclosing that and asking for guidance. A growth mindset should be cultivated in every employee, especially in the policing profession. Mentorship programs can achieve this. 

Bruised apples

Bruised apples sometimes look like bad ones because they make bad choices. The key to distinguishing them from the bad is to look for either a gradual decline or sudden change in their performance. Recently, I spoke with a retired officer who reviewed his employee evaluations for his own reflection and awareness and saw the decline in how he was performing on the job. Does the gal who used to lead the team in arrests now do the bare minimum? Does the guy who used to receive accolades from the community now receive complaints? Obviously, you have to consider other factors that might explain a change in these circumstances (anti-police sentiment, changes in law enforcement practices, etc.). If supervisors notice a gradual decline in an officer’s performance, it would be important to talk with them about what is contributing to the decline. It isn’t the supervisor’s role to problem solve with the officer for personal or mental health issues, but it is their responsibility to recognize that additional support is needed and refer them to their employee assistance program and/or a local first responder clinician. It’s a hard conversation to have, but it’s a lot easier than watching them go downhill and then punish them for bad behavior when they crash at the bottom. 

It’s important to investigate which situation you have since problematic behaviors should be treated based on their reason. Bad apples should be terminated, green apples should be given training and mentorship, while bruised apples deserve support to restore their well-being. This, in turn, can help them return to effective policing practices.

Dr. Stephanie Conn

Dr. Stephanie Conn

Dr. Stephanie Conn is a former police officer and board-certified police and public safety psychologist at First Responder Psychology in Beaverton, Oregon. She is an ASAP instructor and the author of Increasing Resilience in Police and Emergency Personnel. Visit firstresponderpsychology.com for more information.

View articles by Dr. Stephanie Conn

As seen in the September 2021 issue of American Police Beat magazine.
Don’t miss out on another issue today! Click below:

SUBSCRIBE TODAY!

Categories: Health/Wellness

Primary Sidebar

Recent Articles

  • USDOT, Law Enforcement Memorial Partner on Traffic Safety Program
  • National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund Announces April 2025 Officer of the Month
  • National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund Presents 2025 Board Award Winners
  • What’s with all the gear?
  • How local police departments can combat cybercrime
  • Training vs. practice: Improve or maintain?
  • Reckless elegance
  • Keeping work at work and home at home
  • Critical incidents and waiting woosah
  • Setting ethical expectations early in an officer’s career

Footer

Our Mission
To serve as a trusted voice of the nation’s law enforcement community, providing informative, entertaining and inspiring content on interesting and engaging topics affecting peace officers today.

Contact us: info@apbweb.com | (800) 234-0056.

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter

Categories

  • Editor’s Picks
  • On the Job
  • Labor
  • Tech
  • Training
  • Policy
  • Health/Wellness
  • Community
  • Offbeat
  • We Remember
  • Jobs and Careers
  • Events

Editor’s Picks

Off duty, but never off guard

Off duty, but never off guard

May 05, 2025

The tyranny of memories

The tyranny of memories

May 04, 2025

Meeting training needs on a limited budget

Meeting training needs on a limited budget

May 02, 2025

Empowering through experience

Empowering through experience

April 18, 2025

Policies | Consent Preferences | Copyright © 2025 APB Media, LLC | Website design, development and maintenance by 911MEDIA

Open

Subscribe

Close

Receive the latest news and updates from American Police Beat directly to your inbox!

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.