How can ticket inspectors and police officers manage conflict? Research provides practical recommendations

Ticket inspectors and police officers are more likely than workers in other sectors to be exposed to threats and violence from citizens. While there has been a general societal decline in violence, the number of self-reported incidents of violence and threats in these sectors remains high. The seriousness of this problem is underlined by evidence that victimization at the job has  long-term consequences, such as sick leave and the development of post-traumatic stress disorder.

Research through video analysis

Previous research already showed that certain behaviors can (de-)escalate violence. Based on this knowledge and camera footage, the researchers analyzed ‘real life’ conflict situations with ticket inspectors and police officers addressing the following questions: Which situations with citizens increase the chance of violence against employees? What kinds of employee behaviors increase or decrease the risk of being subjected to violence? And what kinds of profession-specific ‘first aid kits’ – containing conflict management tools with concrete examples of appropriate and inappropriate conflict behavior -  can be developed based on the results of the project?

Employee behavior important in (de-)escalation of conflicts

The actions of employees, both ticket inspectors and police officers, significantly influence the behavior of citizens. They therefore largely determine whether citizens will behave violently. The researchers observed that, for both conductors and police officers, an exaggerated justice-oriented attitude among employees can escalate conflicts. Employees who viewed citizens' behavior in moral terms often tried to punish them for their transgressions. This desire to correct mistakes and to name negative attitudes increases the likelihood of threats, violence, and risk-taking behavior.

Recommendations for ticket inspectors

Based on our results and validated against existing evidence, we provide the following recommendations for efficient ticket inspector conflict management:

• Avoid restricting the passenger’s movement. Blocking the doors, physically blocking, or grabbing the passenger can escalate the situation to aggression or violence.
• If a passenger becomes agitated, do not mirror their anger. Instead, stay calm and composed.
• Balance authority by being friendly but firm. Be mindful that body language and speech can signal unnecessary power and dominance, which can complicate the situation.
• Prevent the passenger from feeling a loss of face when issuing a fine. Losing face and status can lead to anger and escalate the conflict.
• Remain impartial so that the passenger does not feel targeted. This can be achieved by referring to and explaining official rules or allowing the passenger to explain without interruption.
• Observe the passenger’s behavior and be alert to authority-challenging and superior reactions. Shifting reactions of the same passenger in attempts to avoid fines can indicate a higher risk of aggression.
• Pay attention to changes in the passenger’s reactions. Passengers who change their reaction patterns are likely to show aggression. For example, a passenger who starts as honest, then aggrieved, and finally superior is likely to exhibit aggression.
• Be aware that prolonged situations increase the risk of escalation. Time is a crucial factor in conflict management.
• For the company, it is important that management prioritizes conflict management with ongoing efforts. Employees need clear instructions on acceptable and unacceptable behaviors during conflicts.
• The company should recognize that different working methods can develop among employees working together. Fixed teams can lead to idiosyncratic ways of handling situations. Mixing employee groups and holding regular staff meetings can help align conflict management strategies.
• The company should acknowledge that ticket inspection requires emotional labor. Conflict situations are intense and it can be challenging to manage one’s emotions. Management must recognize that the inspector's job involves more than just issuing fines.

Recommendations for police officers

Based on our results and existing knowledge in the field, the following general recommendations can be formulated for how police officers can prevent or de-escalate conflict when interacting with citizens:

• Be clear about why you have stopped and are checking a citizen.
• Carefully assess whether the citizen is in a psychological crisis; if so, other mechanisms come into play and professional negotiators/psychiatric personnel should be consulted.
• Listening is more than just hearing. Active listening techniques can strengthen the dialogue between citizens and the police.
• Be cautious in interpreting fear and frustration as aggression.
• Offer the citizen a “way out” by providing clear instructions (“if you do this, then that will happen”).
• Enable the citizen to end the conflict without losing face, which can dismantle a central source of anger and aggression.
• Control your own stress and avoid becoming annoyed by difficult citizens.
• As far as possible, use physical force only to de-escalate the situation to the point where it is possible to use verbal and non-verbal de-escalation techniques.
• When physical force is used, it should be executed in a manner that resolves the conflict as quickly and decisively as possible, to reduce the risk of injury to all involved parties.

About this research

This research was addressed in two PhD projects, each focusing on one occupational group: “Ticket Inspection in Action: Managing Impressions, Status, and Emotions in Contested Everyday Encounters” by Camilla Bank Friis (See dissertation here: https://static-uris.ku.dk/portal/files/376291818/Camilla_Bank_Friis_PhD_Dissertation_2022.pdf), and “Policing in Action: An Interaction-Ethological Study of Police Violence and Conflict Management” by Hans Myhre Sunde (thesis to be defended in 2024). 

The full report is available here: Reduction of Threats and Violence Toward Ticket Inspectors and Police Officers Through Systematic Analysis of Conflict Behavior

For further questions please contact principal investigator prof. dr. Marie Rosenkrantz Lindegaard: MRLindegaard@nscr.nl