OPOTA EXAM QUESTIONS & ANSWERS
Explain the relationship between a SPO and a test question - Answer -A test question
must respond directly to an SPO and every SPO may be the basis of a test question
Explain the ultimate reason for law enforcement training - Answer -To be able to protect
the life and property of yourself and the public
List a peace officer's main goals - Answer -- Enforce the laws
- Preserve the peace,
- Prevent crime
- Protect civil rights and liberties
- Provide services
Explain items to consider when exercising discretion - Answer -- Use sound judgment
to determine which laws are to be formally enforced
- Determine if there is a more constructive remedy without arrest or citation
Explain the factors necessary for the commission of crime - Answer -Desire - the
motivation behind criminal behavior
Victim - potential target, unaware of surroundings
Opportunity - crime prevention strategies
State the core concepts of community policing - Answer --partnership between
community and police
-crime prevention
-organizational change of agency
-problem solving approach to police role is proactive
Considerations for off duty situations - Answer -Behavior - social media, uphold ethics
Situational Awareness- be alert, pre plan, off duty weapon policy, be a good witness
State the purpose of Bill of Rights - Answer -protect a individual's freedoms
-prevent government from interfering in protected rights
Describe the major components of the criminal justice system - Answer -Law
Enforcement
Courts - hold fair & impartial trials, guilt or innocence, Impose sentences
Corrections - supervise offender
Goals of Sentencing - Answer --protect society
-punish offender/rehabilitate
-restore the victim
Recognize the tenets of the Below 100 - Answer --wear your seatbelt
,-wear your vest
-WIN what's important now
-watch your speed
-complacency kills
Lawful - Answer -defined by laws and standards
Criminal Law - Answer -identifies what actions are prohibited
Rules of Agency - Answer -Administrative rules, general orders
Constitutional Law - Answer -amendments
Police Legitimacy - Answer -exists when the public view the police as authorized to
exercise power in order to maintain social order, manage conflicts, and solve problems
in community
Judgement 1/3
public trust and confidence in police as being honest, trying to do jobs well, and
protecting community - Answer -Result
individuals are more likely to become actively involved in police community partnerships
Judgment #2
public willingness to defer the law and police authority - Answer -Result
Correlation between those who obey and those who view police as legitimate,
cooperate by reporting crimes and providing information
Judgement #3
public belief that police actions are morally justified and appropriate - Answer -Result
citizens are more likely to cooperate and defer in moments of crisis
circumstances when filming police officers is permissible - Answer --one party consents
-as long as it does not interfere with officers carrying out their duties
Race - Answer -modern concept used to classify people by similar, observable physical
characteristics
Genetically influenced traits - Answer -Skin color, hair, eye shape, blood type,
intelligence
connection between in / out groups, and police legitimacy - Answer -some people
interpret their encounters with police in terms of their group's societal position rather
than immediate circumstances of the police contact
Types of Racism - Answer -individual, interpersonal, institutional, structural
,Individual Racism - Answer -internalized, unexpressed biases and prejudices based on
race
Interpersonal Racism - Answer -occurs between individuals, public expressions of
racial prejudice and hate
institutional racism - Answer -discriminatory policies and treatment by institutions
Structural Racism - Answer -Collective way of history, culture, power inequality,
unequal access to opportunities
Components of bias - Answer -stereotypes, prejudice, attitude
Stereotypes - Answer -generalizations about the perceived typical characteristics of a
social category
Prejudice - Answer -a often negative prejudgment based on characteristics such as
race, age
Attitude - Answer -positive or negative feelings associated with individuals or groups
Bias-based profiling - Answer --Racial/illegal profiling
-unequal treatment by officers by stopping, questioning, searching, detaining on basis of
their ethnicity
Criminal profiling - Answer -Based on observed behaviors and characteristics
Two types of Bias - Answer -explicit and implicit
Explicit Bias - Answer -conscious preference for a social category
Implicit bias - Answer -preference for a social category based on stereotypes that we
hold and tend to develop in early life
Two modes of thinking - Answer -automatic (system 1)
deliberative (system 2)
System 1 thinking - Answer -automatic, effortless, unconscious, very fast
System 2 thinking - Answer -Conscious, controlled, effortful, slower
practical purpose - Answer -simplifies tasks which most adults do without having to
systematically think about each step
protection mechanism - Answer -we evaluate everything we see to determine if
threatening or not
, strategies to counter implicit biases - Answer --Guarding against influence in decision
making
-awareness
-know when you're susceptible ( in complete info, cognitive load, fatigue)
-slow down thinking
-empathetic
-effort (intention, attention, time)
Two-pronged Approach to Procedural Justice - Answer -person based approach
community based model
person based approach - Answer -emphasizes the importance of face to face
interactions between officer and a citizen
Community based model - Answer -ultimate goal is to achieve police legitimacy through
entire society
community bank account concept as it relates to procedural justice - Answer -every
encounter is either a deposit or withdrawal (increase or decrease public perception of
police)
four core principles of procedural justice - Answer -giving others a voice, neutrality in
decision making, respectful treatment, trustworthiness
explain the generally accepted ethical responsibilities of officers - Answer --owed to
your community, citizens, profession, agency, family, yourself
-treat everyone professionally
-never allow cynicism, excessive force, perjury and accept gratuities
External Influences on behavior - Answer -relationships with family and friends,
citizens, media, regulations, politics, subculture
Internal influences on behavior - Answer -officer's own ethical and moral beliefs, anger,
greed, lust
Denial of victim - Answer -argue that violated party deserves to be victimized
Denial of responsibility - Answer -acted improperly because no other options
Denial of injury - Answer -argue that action did not hurt anyone so no ethical
misconduct
Social Weighting - Answer -makes comparisons to justify unethical misconduct
Explain the relationship between a SPO and a test question - Answer -A test question
must respond directly to an SPO and every SPO may be the basis of a test question
Explain the ultimate reason for law enforcement training - Answer -To be able to protect
the life and property of yourself and the public
List a peace officer's main goals - Answer -- Enforce the laws
- Preserve the peace,
- Prevent crime
- Protect civil rights and liberties
- Provide services
Explain items to consider when exercising discretion - Answer -- Use sound judgment
to determine which laws are to be formally enforced
- Determine if there is a more constructive remedy without arrest or citation
Explain the factors necessary for the commission of crime - Answer -Desire - the
motivation behind criminal behavior
Victim - potential target, unaware of surroundings
Opportunity - crime prevention strategies
State the core concepts of community policing - Answer --partnership between
community and police
-crime prevention
-organizational change of agency
-problem solving approach to police role is proactive
Considerations for off duty situations - Answer -Behavior - social media, uphold ethics
Situational Awareness- be alert, pre plan, off duty weapon policy, be a good witness
State the purpose of Bill of Rights - Answer -protect a individual's freedoms
-prevent government from interfering in protected rights
Describe the major components of the criminal justice system - Answer -Law
Enforcement
Courts - hold fair & impartial trials, guilt or innocence, Impose sentences
Corrections - supervise offender
Goals of Sentencing - Answer --protect society
-punish offender/rehabilitate
-restore the victim
Recognize the tenets of the Below 100 - Answer --wear your seatbelt
,-wear your vest
-WIN what's important now
-watch your speed
-complacency kills
Lawful - Answer -defined by laws and standards
Criminal Law - Answer -identifies what actions are prohibited
Rules of Agency - Answer -Administrative rules, general orders
Constitutional Law - Answer -amendments
Police Legitimacy - Answer -exists when the public view the police as authorized to
exercise power in order to maintain social order, manage conflicts, and solve problems
in community
Judgement 1/3
public trust and confidence in police as being honest, trying to do jobs well, and
protecting community - Answer -Result
individuals are more likely to become actively involved in police community partnerships
Judgment #2
public willingness to defer the law and police authority - Answer -Result
Correlation between those who obey and those who view police as legitimate,
cooperate by reporting crimes and providing information
Judgement #3
public belief that police actions are morally justified and appropriate - Answer -Result
citizens are more likely to cooperate and defer in moments of crisis
circumstances when filming police officers is permissible - Answer --one party consents
-as long as it does not interfere with officers carrying out their duties
Race - Answer -modern concept used to classify people by similar, observable physical
characteristics
Genetically influenced traits - Answer -Skin color, hair, eye shape, blood type,
intelligence
connection between in / out groups, and police legitimacy - Answer -some people
interpret their encounters with police in terms of their group's societal position rather
than immediate circumstances of the police contact
Types of Racism - Answer -individual, interpersonal, institutional, structural
,Individual Racism - Answer -internalized, unexpressed biases and prejudices based on
race
Interpersonal Racism - Answer -occurs between individuals, public expressions of
racial prejudice and hate
institutional racism - Answer -discriminatory policies and treatment by institutions
Structural Racism - Answer -Collective way of history, culture, power inequality,
unequal access to opportunities
Components of bias - Answer -stereotypes, prejudice, attitude
Stereotypes - Answer -generalizations about the perceived typical characteristics of a
social category
Prejudice - Answer -a often negative prejudgment based on characteristics such as
race, age
Attitude - Answer -positive or negative feelings associated with individuals or groups
Bias-based profiling - Answer --Racial/illegal profiling
-unequal treatment by officers by stopping, questioning, searching, detaining on basis of
their ethnicity
Criminal profiling - Answer -Based on observed behaviors and characteristics
Two types of Bias - Answer -explicit and implicit
Explicit Bias - Answer -conscious preference for a social category
Implicit bias - Answer -preference for a social category based on stereotypes that we
hold and tend to develop in early life
Two modes of thinking - Answer -automatic (system 1)
deliberative (system 2)
System 1 thinking - Answer -automatic, effortless, unconscious, very fast
System 2 thinking - Answer -Conscious, controlled, effortful, slower
practical purpose - Answer -simplifies tasks which most adults do without having to
systematically think about each step
protection mechanism - Answer -we evaluate everything we see to determine if
threatening or not
, strategies to counter implicit biases - Answer --Guarding against influence in decision
making
-awareness
-know when you're susceptible ( in complete info, cognitive load, fatigue)
-slow down thinking
-empathetic
-effort (intention, attention, time)
Two-pronged Approach to Procedural Justice - Answer -person based approach
community based model
person based approach - Answer -emphasizes the importance of face to face
interactions between officer and a citizen
Community based model - Answer -ultimate goal is to achieve police legitimacy through
entire society
community bank account concept as it relates to procedural justice - Answer -every
encounter is either a deposit or withdrawal (increase or decrease public perception of
police)
four core principles of procedural justice - Answer -giving others a voice, neutrality in
decision making, respectful treatment, trustworthiness
explain the generally accepted ethical responsibilities of officers - Answer --owed to
your community, citizens, profession, agency, family, yourself
-treat everyone professionally
-never allow cynicism, excessive force, perjury and accept gratuities
External Influences on behavior - Answer -relationships with family and friends,
citizens, media, regulations, politics, subculture
Internal influences on behavior - Answer -officer's own ethical and moral beliefs, anger,
greed, lust
Denial of victim - Answer -argue that violated party deserves to be victimized
Denial of responsibility - Answer -acted improperly because no other options
Denial of injury - Answer -argue that action did not hurt anyone so no ethical
misconduct
Social Weighting - Answer -makes comparisons to justify unethical misconduct
