| Dr.
James T. Reese is an internationally recognized
author, lecturer, and consultant in the areas of
stress management, motivation, threat and risk assessments,
and workplace violence. He has authored and co-edited
seven books and is an editor for the new Journal
of Threat Assessment. He has addressed representatives
of more than 300 Fortune 500 companies, law enforcement
agencies, hospitals, and other businesses. A former
Lieutenant and decorated combat veteran of Vietnam,
he served as an FBI Agent for 25 years retiring
in 1995 as the Assistant Unit Chief of the Behavioral
Science Unit, FBI Academy. For 18 years he taught
stress management, criminology, abnormal psychology
and profiling and was adjunct faculty with the University
of Virginia. During his assignment to the FBI Academy,
he also profiled criminal matters (a "Mind
Hunter" as portrayed by Psychology Today).
Dr. Reese has provided expert testimony before the
United States Congress on Stress and addressed President
George Bush's Council on Integrity and Efficiency.
He serves as the Director of Violence Prevention
for the Crisis Care Network, Inc. He is president
of James T. Reese and Associates, an international
behavioral sciences and management-consulting firm
headquartered in Lake Ridge, Virginia, USA. He has
addressed audiences and consulted throughout the
world. He is Board Certified in Domestic Violence,
Stress Management, School Crisis Response, Emergency
Crisis Response, and Traumatic Stress. His video
is entitled "Dr. Jim Reese on Integrity and
Courage" and his audiocassette series is entitled
"Six Keys to Stress-Free Living™". Dr.
Reese is a Fellow of The American Academy of Experts
in Traumatic Stress and the Academy is privileged
to have him serve on the Board of Scientific &
Professional Advisors.
JSV: You keep quite busy as a lecturer, consultant
and author. Can you tell me about the various roles
and/or positions that you currently hold?
JTR: Yes, fortunately I do keep very busy. As you
may recall, I returned your call about this interview
from the Hawaiian Islands. Last year also took my
company to Hong Kong, Japan, Canada, and Europe
as well as more than 25 states. I am the sole proprietor
of James T. Reese and Associates and James T. Reese
European Associates. We are an international behavioral
sciences and management consulting firm serving
both government and private industry on a wide array
of topics including workplace violence, stress management,
executive stress, ethics-based leadership, motivational
keynotes and more. Aside from keynote presentations,
criminal profiling, and corporate and law enforcement
training, my time is spent consulting with organizations
and corporations regarding workplace violence issues,
from policy and procedure development to assisting
in the termination of employees. Time is also spent
doing assessments, or profiles, of employees whose
behavior is threatening, harassing, or violent.
I have spoken to audiences on a wide range of topics,
to include school violence at state superintendents
conferences, domestic violence at the Crystal Cathedral
in Garden Grove, California, "Six Keys to Stress
Free Living"
at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas and the Tropicana
in Atlantic City. I have also provided expert testimony
on law enforcement stress before the United States
Congress, and addressed President George Bush's
Council on Integrity and efficiency. In addition
to this, James T. Reese and Associates was chosen
by the Crisis Care Network, Inc., Grand Rapids,
Michigan (888-736-0911) to direct their violence
prevention program. Lyle Labardee, A.A.E.T.S., their
CEO, has created the country's leading, nationwide
private sector provider of on-site response to violence
and traumatic workplace incidents, currently serving
over 2,500 companies. In that capacity, I share
a 24 hours a day, 7 days a week call center (hot
line), answered by Masters level clinicians. I am
also in the process of contracting with additional
corporations regarding an ongoing consulting relationship
with regards to stress management, threat assessments
and workplace violence issues. All of the above
grew out of experiences and knowledge I was able
to gain during my 25 years as an FBI Agent.
JSV: I understand that you are a founding member
of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) National
Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime. How did
this program develop?
JTR: I was an Agent in the Behavioral Science Unit
and was therefore invited to be one of the founders
of the FBI's National Center for the Analysis of
Violent Crime. This was a team effort put together
by the professional support persons and Agents assigned
to the Behavioral Science Unit at the FBI's Academy
in Quantico, VA. For years we had been accepting
"qualified" homicide cases, serial rapes,
and other crimes from law enforcement for the purposes
of "profiling." Among the purposes for
the National Center was to provide order and structure
to the process and insure that we gained the maximum
benefits from the information obtained. It is still
in place and the men and women of the FBI are still
in the trenches, working day in and day out to solve
the most bizarre crimes of the century, as well
as the every day homicides that plague this nation.
These are really talented and dedicated people,
both agents and professional support personnel,
who endure the images of death daily in an effort
to solve crimes and put criminals where they can
no longer harm anyone. I was pleased to have co-authored
the first article on profiling in the FBI Law Enforcement
Bulletin entitled "A Psychological Assessment
of Crime: Profiling" (Ault and Reese, 1980).
This was an attempt to let people know what profiling
was all about. The process has become much more
sophisticated and now there are people in the FBI
whose job is dedicated solely to receiving these
unsolved crimes from law enforcement and attempting
to profile them. These are typically serial crimes,
bizarre homicide cases, child abductions, and the
like. There are requirements concerning the cases
the FBI will accept for profiling. This is due to
the volume of crime that exists. The FBI's Training
Division at Quantico is in the best position to
provide details concerning that criterion.
JSV: For 25 years, you served as a Special Agent
of the FBI and ultimately became the Assistant Unit
Chief of the prestigious Behavioral Science Unit
at the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia. How did
you become involved with the FBI?
JTR: It was 1971. Vietnam was behind me. I had graduated
from Arkansas State University in 1968 with a Bachelors
Degree in Social Science. My first set of military
orders following my graduation and subsequent commission
as an officer in the Army made it clear that I would
be spending a year in Vietnam. I arrived in Vietnam
in April of 1969 and served in the Mekong Delta.
Little did I know that this would be my first encounter
in a long line of stress-related encounters that
would shape my professional career and my life.
More than 100 ambushes and dozens of helicopter
assaults later, I left the Republic of South Vietnam.
Upon my return to the United States, I was determined
to never work again for anyone who told me what
to do, what to wear, or how to act. That determination
didn't last long. The country, and J. Edgar Hoover,
needed FBI Agents! My brother, Ron, had just ended
his tour as an officer in the United States Navy
and was accepted by the FBI as an Agent. He encouraged
me to apply prior to my discharge from the Army.
I applied and the rest is history. The FBI, like
any job, had its ups and downs. One of the more
humorous, and subsequently memorable, events during
my early career involved efforts to respond to my
first bank robbery. The Bureau car radio squawked
"All units, we have a bank robbery in progress",
and the address was given. My first FBI car was
a 1968, two-toned green, Rambler. It was equipped
with a portable, hand-held magnetic "Kojak"
light. In attempting to get to the bank quickly,
I was unable to get it to stay on top of the vinyl
roof. I thought I was in a cartoon. I questioned
the Bureau's attention to details.
As early as 1974 I knew that I wanted to be a faculty
member at the FBI Academy; to have a voice in training
this nation's law enforcement elite; to learn the
skills of a profiler and make a difference in the
world. I earned a Masters Degree in 1976 at American
International College as I worked as an FBI Resident
Agent in Springfield, Massachusetts and was transferred
to the FBI Academy as an instructor in the Behavioral
Science Unit in 1978. I would remain there for 18
years until my retirement in 1995. During that time,
I was accepted into the doctoral program at The
American University and, going to school at night,
earned a Ph.D. in 1987.
JSV: What is a Criminal Personality Profiler? In
that capacity, are there any cases that stand out
in your memory? What were your connections with
the film The Silence of the Lambs and the title
"Mind Hunter"?
JTR: On the latter point, the movie The Silence
of the Lambs was filmed, in part, in the Behavioral
Sciences Unit and other locations at the FBI Academy.
The writers, producers, and directors apparently
sought information, academy props, and advice to
make the movie realistic. It was based on what criminal
profilers were doing. That is where the behavioral
science unit portion of the film was developed with
"Hannibal Lechter" as the focus. The name
"Mind Hunters" was given to us by Psychology
Today magazine. They had written an article about
those of us who made up the profiling section at
the time. The article featured a "centerfold"
photograph and it featured me and the other profilers.
We were all sitting around a desk as if we were
examining photographs of a crime scene. Across the
top of the picture was the title "Mind Hunters."
The article was about those of us in the Behavioral
Science Unit who were doing profiling. The FBI has
made great strides in their knowledge of criminal
behavior and criminal profiling since that article,
and since I left in 1995.
With regard to profiling, there are certain clues
at a crime scene, which, by their very nature, do
not lend themselves to being collected or examined.
How does one collect love, rage, hatred, fear, jealousy,
irrationality, or other intangibles? Clues left
at a crime scene may be of inestimable value in
leading to the solution of a crime; however, they
are not necessarily items of physical evidence,
per se. While these items may be present at a crime
scene, the untrained eye will inevitably miss them.
Nothing can take the place of a well-executed investigation;
however, the use of psychology to assist in the
assessment of a crime is an additional tool, which
the law enforcement officer should use in solving
crimes. The purpose of the psychological assessment
of a crime scene is to produce a profile; that is,
to identify and interpret certain items of evidence
at the crime scene which would be indicative of
the personality type of the individual or individuals
committing the crime. As Webster would say, "It
is a short, vivid biography briefly outlining the
most outstanding characteristics of the subject."
The goal of the profiler is to provide enough information
to investigators to enable them to limit or better
direct their investigations. For example, in one
case, a profile provided enough information that
officers recalled an individual whom they had already
questioned that fit the profile description. When
they returned to the individual, he confessed. It
should be noted that, in this particular case, we
assisted in providing interview techniques.
During one particular summer, a woman in a suburban
city on the east coast reported to the police that
she had been raped. After learning the facts of
this case, the investigating officer realized this
was the seventh rape within the past two years wherein
the same modus operandi was used. There were no
investigative leads remaining and no suspects. The
incidents reports of each of the rapes, together
with transcripts of the interviews of the victims
were brought to the Behavioral Science Unit where
I looked them over. Between what I discovered in
the reports and the assistance of others in the
unit, it was determined that the rapes were probably
committed by the same person and described him as
a white male, 25 to 35 years of age, divorced or
separated and working at a marginally skilled job,
high school education, poor self-image, living in
the immediate area of the rapes, and as being involved
in acts of voyeurism ("Peeping Tom").
It was likely that the police had spoken to this
man in that many times these types of "prowlers"
are questioned by police and released. Based upon
the FBI information, 40 suspects were developed
in the neighborhood. They narrowed their investigation
to one and focused on him. He was arrested within
the week. You can't look at an entire population.
We try to narrow the suspects down. Lives can be
saved.
During 1979, I was assigned to teach a homicide/profiling
school near Newport News, VA. After teaching all-day
and retiring for the night, the phone rang about
11:00pm. It was the deputy chief of the Newport
News Police Department, a man who had, ironically,
been a student in my class that day. He reported
that the body of a young woman had been found in
a motel room in Newport News. She had been shot
in the stomach with a high-powered rifle. The body
was handcuffed (apparently post-mortem) and the
door to the motel room where she was found was barricaded
from the inside. There appeared to be no evidence
of robbery, sexual assault, or other motive. She
was a manager in housekeeping and apparently surprised
the murderer when she entered the room. The murderer
had escaped through a rear bathroom window and fled
into the woods behind the motel. Prior to my involvement
in the case, a police officer and his police dog
were sent into the woods to flush out the murderer.
The murderer confronted them at gunpoint and ordered
them out of the woods. They immediately left the
woods and are lucky to be with us today. I was taken
to the scene and asked to do a profile or assessment
of the subject. I had been teaching the Deputy Chief
that day about homicides and people who keep diaries
and the like. The subject had left a diary and a
sea bag full of clothes at the motel room. The diaries
provided psycholinguistic clues concerning the subject's
personality. I decided that it was not a good idea
to go into the woods at night. The subject either
is or was a Marine and probably mentally ill. While
not qualified to diagnose, we believed him to be
paranoid schizophrenic based upon the writings found
in the diaries in his sea bag. We learned early
on however, to not label people with mental health
terms. Therefore, our profiles simply described
the individuals and their expected behavior. I suggested
to the police to wait for the first light of the
morning to enter the woods. I emphasized that they
should continue during the night to call him out
with bullhorns but that he would not surrender.
He did not. Someone suggested lighting up the area
with helicopters. I recommended that they not do
that due to his paranoia and delusional thinking
about Vietnam. At approximately 5:45am, a SWAT team
entered the woods. They got within 50 feet of the
subject who stood up and fired on them. The subject
was shot and died after about 30 days hospitalization.
He was a former marine, he had dug about 6 foxholes,
had 351 rounds of ammunition for his rifle, and
was in full marine corps gear; helmet, flack jacket,
web belt, canteen, the works. The profile worked
and perhaps some officers are alive today because
of it.
JSV: I know, Jim, that personality profiling has
gained a presence in many school districts around
the country.
JTR: Yes, Joe, and I have had the pleasure of addressing
many of the school systems. I try, as many others
do, to help teachers, administrators, and students
understand the phenomena of violence, the appropriate
policies to put in place and the procedures to deal
with violent, or potential violent, acts. Unfortunately,
more security cameras cannot solve the problem.
While the idea of surveillance is important, it
may simply be a means to document that which occurs
rather than prevent the occurrence. A combination
of physical security and mental preparedness is
essential. It is important to note, however, that
many students match any given "profile"
at any given time. The key is to not pigeonhole
or categorically suspect someone of wrongdoing simply
because of a profile. A profile, historically, has
been a set of characteristics and behaviors of someone
who is unknown, versus an "assessment"
of someone who is known. Much in the same way investigative
hypnosis can be used as an investigative tool, so
too, profiling should be used as only a tool and
considered in light of other pieces of information
(especially in schools). Some of the early warning
signs of potential violence in children, which would
be added to any given profile, may include continued
problem behavior, comments regarding problems in
their family or dysfunction within the family, implied
and/or verbal threats to other students and faculty,
continual tardiness and an increase of absences,
changes in "normal" behavior patterns,
withdrawal, and other indicators, to include a perceived
reduction in self worth. By the way, I think that
the Academy should be very proud of the advancements
made in the area of school crisis response. The
Academy is a leader in the provision of information
concerning school crisis intervention from what
I can see with your publication (Dr. Reese is referring
to A Practical Guide for Crisis Response in Our
Schools: Fourth Edition recently published by the
Academy).
JSV: As you are aware, The American Academy of Experts
in Traumatic Stress is a multidisciplinary network
of professionals representing over 200 professions
in the health-related fields, emergency services,
criminal justice, forensics, law, business and education.
Many of our organization's members must respond
on the "front lines" of risk and danger
as a part of their occupation. Are there unique
stressors associated with working for the FBI?
JTR: Yes, there are unique stress factors working
for the FBI, or any emergency service provider for
that matter. While it has always been considered
one of the most stressful occupations in the world,
law enforcement doesn't hold the copyright on stress,
nor has it been universally and empirically proven
to be the most stressful occupation in the world.
The uniqueness of the stress in police work, as
well as in the FBI, revolves around the responsibility
for people, the dangers associated with the job,
the long, irregular hours, the pressures placed
upon the employees to perform at their maximum capacity
24-hours a day, and the need to control their emotions
on a full-time basis. I call this "Image Armor",
the need to always look in control. Among other
issues leading to stress is the uniqueness of emergency
service personnel. For example, we are very authoritative,
we are risk-takers, we never make mistakes, we are
hypervigilant, cynical, suspicious, pessimistic,
have negative attitudes about people, rarely talk
about our feelings to others and are always looking
for action. Add to that the fact that we seem to
be less willing to socialize and one can readily
see how this impacts upon us as individuals as well
as our support system.
JSV: What factors led to your development of the
FBI's Stress Management Program and Psychological
Services Program?
JTR: I am pleased to say that I was chosen to monitor
the FBI Psychological Services Program when it began
in 1980. I piloted the program when the FBI hired
its first psychiatrist. Today, the FBI has an Employee
Assistance Unit with trained Employee Assistance
Coordinators (FBI employees) in every field office
in the FBI, a Psychological Services Program and
a Critical Incident program where employees involved
in critical incidents go to the Academy at Quantico
to attend an in-service program, which offers assistance
to them. The attendees ultimately can learn to assist
others as peer support employees. I am also proud
to say that I was just asked to speak at the next
national meeting of the FBI's Employee Assistance
Program. I hope they will always feel free to call
on me. They have really done more with that program
than I ever imagined. They should all be very proud
of their accomplishments. It ranks as one of the
best Employee Assistance Programs in the worldwide
law enforcement community. It should also be recognized
and understood that these people are trying to provide
emotional and psychological support, not to just
a city or a department, but to thousands of employees,
from our field offices in the United States to the
many legal attaches located throughout the world.
They have the full support of the Director of the
FBI and that will help to insure the ongoing success
of the program. Any program without that level of
support is doomed to fail.
I assisted in developing the overall stress management
program as a result of my exposure to seeing death
and dying through profiling on a day-to-day basis
and experiencing the interruptions this job presents
to families. In August of 1979, I was to learn how
important a support system was to this profession.
One particular evening, my wife, Sandy and our (then
two-and-a-half year old) daughter, Jamie and I were
preparing to go out shopping. I can still picture
my wife, putting a jacket on my daughter, when our
phone rang. It was the office of an Executive Director
of the FBI. There had been a commercial airline
hijacking at SeaTac (Seattle Tacoma International
Airport). Headquarters wanted some behavioral scientists,
"profilers" to go to the command center
in Washington, DC to assist in appraising the subject
and the situation. It was stated that he had a bomb
in his briefcase and was holding 55 people on the
commercial jet, hostage. The plane was on the tarmac.
Two other profilers were also called and met me
in Washington DC at FBI Headquarters. The hijacker's
demands were $100,000, a parachute and the jet.
We worked with Seattle PD SWAT, the Port Authority,
FBI SWAT, local and state police, and the FBI negotiator
throughout the night. It ended about 3am with the
hijacker settling for a "rental car and a cheeseburger".
As he deplaned to get the car he had demanded, FBI
SWAT members, hidden under the plane, apprehended
him and his briefcase. We had earlier predicted
that there was no bomb. There was no bomb found.
We went home to sleeping families. He went to jail,
only to be released at a later date to be killed
in the commission of another commercial airline
hijacking.
In 1980, I traveled to Jacksonville, Florida with
another agent to teach an advanced criminology school.
During the week we were there, we arranged to interview
Arthur Frederick Goode, III. Goode was a convicted
child abductor / killer who was incarcerated at
Raeford State Prison in Starkville, Florida awaiting
execution. We interviewed him for six hours about
his homosexual, homicidal behaviors with his victims.
He would kidnap young, 12 years old or so, force
them to engage in sexual behaviors and then murder
them. He would then write disgustingly descriptive
letters to their parents, describing what he did
to their children. We were talking to him to try
to learn more about men who do these types of crimes.
While I didn't expect to see any remorse, what I
did see surprised me. A cold, calculated response
to even the most sensitive questions regarding the
murders. Upon leaving the cell, Goode reinforced
what we knew about psychopathic behavior. In an
effort to assert his ego and recapture control at
the last minute, he asked us (with a grin on his
face) as we left death row, "Do you have any
little boys at home?" In law enforcement, sometimes
the hardest thing to do is to do nothing. Contrary
to the thoughts that were running through my head
at the time, all I could do was leave. That is the
type of stress you take home with you.
There was one particularly stressful occasion when
I was profiling a case in which all of the children
in a family were killed. Each was shot gunned in
the face in their beds. In an effort to come up
with a profile, I and a few other agents spent an
inordinate amount of time staring at the photos
of these "faceless" children. A few nights
later, I walked into my daughter's room to tuck
her in bed. She was lying in bed with her back to
me. I couldn't leave the room. I had to walk around
her bed to make sure she was all right. In law enforcement,
this is referred to as "vicarious victimization."
It was based upon that type of occurrence, and the
stories told to me by other profilers and police
officers regarding stress, that encouraged me to
accept an invitation to write a chapter in a book
by another former FBI Agent / profiler, Robert "Roy"'
Hazelwood. His co-edited book is entitled Practical
Aspects of Rape Investigation: A Multidisciplinary
Approach, and my chapter is entitled "Rape
Investigators: Vicarious Victims." Trauma response
providers (e.g., many of the members of the A.A.E.T.S.)
know that one can only experience so much of this
stimuli without eventually incorporating some of
it into one's life. Such vicarious victimization
led me, and my colleagues, to develop the stress
management program. I ultimately helped develop
post-critical incident policies in England and Northern
Ireland, and I continue, today, to build stress
management programs for corporations, law enforcement,
and a variety of organizations.
JSV: I understand that you have lectured to several
hundred Fortune 500 companies. Some of the topics
that you have presented include "6 Keys to
Stress-free Living," "Stress Management
- Facing the Millennium," "Workplace Violence/Wellness"
and "The Greatest Difficulty in Life - Choice."
What made you focus on these areas and how have
they been received by your audiences?
JTR: I believe that if you are not in control of
your life then something else is. These topics you
just spoke of are always received with the same
enthusiasm with which I deliver them. I truly believe
that these principles work. I receive letters and
emails almost on a daily basis in which someone
expresses gratitude for the message. I try to emphasize
the need for balance. It is important for one to
do one's job well. Also, it is important to "get
a life." I emphasize the need for balance in
spiritual, familial, personal, and occupational
endeavors. I have lectured on executive stress management
to representatives of more than 300 Fortune 500
companies. I recently spoke to the second most powerful
executive in one of the world's five largest corporations
regarding controlling corporate stress both among
executives and other employees. I have had the pleasure
of addressing members of the National Football League
as well as presenting at the NATO Advanced Studies
Institute in Sciathos, Greece, and the Royal Ulster
Constabulary in Belfast. From chief executives,
to plant foreman, to rank and file, there is no
audience on this planet that does not relate to
the stress of everyday existence. I consider it
my job, as well as a privilege, to provide people
with tools to cope with the stress and remind them
of the joys in life. Without exception, corporate
employees, firefighters, and law enforcement officers
alike report that their job satisfaction improves,
their production increases and their home life takes
on a new and more meaningful purpose. It is a great
message for the corporate world as we tackle the
challenges of the new millennium and…it decreases
workplace violence!
JSV: You have become a Fellow of The American Academy
of Experts in Traumatic Stress as well as Board
Certified by the Academy in Emergency Crisis Response,
Domestic Violence and Stress Management. What made
you pursue these credentials offered through the
Academy=s Board Certification Programs in traumatic
stress specialties?
JTR: I pursued earning the credentials of the A.A.E.T.S.
because it was the first, and perhaps only, professional
organization that was more "inclusive"
than "exclusive." Most groups are trying
to find reasons to keep you out. This organization
is quite obviously the opposite. It seeks to find
those who are in the business of helping others
and providing them with credentials and support
that they could not find elsewhere. Also, my clients
have the right to believe that a competent authority
has examined my background and activities and have
decided my credentials demonstrate expertise in
a particular discipline. Anyone can call himself
or herself an expert. The A.A.E.T.S. asks their
membership to provide details to support this claim
and then they either agree or disagree. It is not
a rubber stamp process. Fortunately, the Academy
has examined my credentials and approved several
board certifications. I enjoy the relationship with
the A.A.E.T.S. and have encouraged many to apply
for membership.
JSV: Tell me about Worlds at War, Minds at Peace.
What motivated you to develop this publication?
JTR: My upcoming book, Worlds at War, Minds at Peace,
is still in the editing stage. Due to the demands
placed upon my company regarding violence in the
workplace and stress management, I have not been
able to bring it to a conclusion. In that publication,
I talk about stress and stress management from things
I had experienced including combat in Vietnam and
my FBI work. Perhaps within this year it will be
complete. Aside from the book, there is currently
a video that is obtainable and being used in many
law enforcement agencies and critical incident stress
management teams. It is entitled "Dr. Jim Reese
on Integrity and Courage" (410) 740-0065. However,
my hopes of helping people manage stress are riding
high on the soon to be released audiocassette signature
series tapes and workbook entitled "Six Keys
to Stress-Free Living: A Guide to Recapturing Control
of Your Life™" (800) 425-0308. This is being
produced by Shield International, Provo, Utah and
will be ready for release within the next 60 days.
My products and publications will also eventually
be available on my website at www.jamestreese.com.
In this new audiotape series, I explore the unique
challenges we face each day in our jobs, families,
and in our stress-filled society. The six keys offer
significant insights into the causes and signs of
stress and the challenges associated with a stress-filled
life. In the tapes, I provide practical and motivational
strategies for combating stress, dealing effectively
with change and moving toward stress-free living.
The books that I had written or co-edited while
in the FBI are currently out of print. I am hopeful
that the FBI will see fit to continue to make them
available due to the wealth of information which
all of the authors of the chapters provided. They
have been the foundations of law enforcement psychology
since the first was published in 1986. It seems
wrong to keep this information from those who could
use it. It would appear that the information was
valuable before, and is no less valuable now. I
am continually asked how copies can be obtained.
Perhaps at some point the government will see fit
to continue to provide the information in these
books to those who could use it. For those who are
interested, the books are Psychological Services
for Law Enforcement (Reese & Goldstein, 1986);
Police Psychology: Operational Assistance (Reese
and Horn, 1988); Critical Incidents in Policing
(Reese, Horn, & Dunning, 1991); Law Enforcement
Families: Issues and Answers (Reese & Scrivner,
1994); and Organizational Issues (Reese & Solomon,
1995). I also wrote the first and most complete
History of Psychological Services in Law Enforcement
Organizations in the United States, (Reese, 1987).
JSV: As you are aware, The American Academy of Experts
in Traumatic Stress recognizes that traumatic events
are an unfortunate part of the human experience
that professionals and workers from many fields
work with on a regular basis. What do you see as
the major advantage of an organization such as the
Academy that is dedicated to increasing awareness
and, ultimately, improving the quality of intervention
with survivors of such events across such an eclectic
group?
JTR: I asked myself that question when I joined
A.A.E.T.S. When you, Joe, first approached me some
years ago, to become a member of this fine organization,
I realized that there needed to be some standardization.
There has to be some place to go to obtain information,
share information and network with others in a multidisciplinary
fashion. When I look at your board of advisors and
your membership, the only word that comes to mind
is "eclectic" and the organization has
certainly covered all the bases. Based upon the
unfortunate trauma that humans experience, the organization
has increased awareness (this can be seen by the
academy's growing, diverse membership). The membership
genuinely shows concern for victims and because
of this, victim providers benefit on an international
level. Also, your publication, Trauma Response®
is outstanding and I believe that every one of your
members always looks forward to receiving it in
the mail.
JSV: As an esteemed member of the Board of Scientific
and Professional Advisors of The American Academy
of Experts in Traumatic Stress, are there any suggestions
or concluding comments that you could offer with
regard to helping survivors of traumatic stress?
JTR: The greatest assets of any trauma response
provider seem to be those of understanding, caring,
relating on a realistic level and availability.
I have found that in the emergency services, especially
law enforcement since that is my background, the
one item they must have in their lives is control.
Traumatic incidents tend to take that control from
them. Responders can't control events or many of
the outcomes of events but they absolutely must
control their emotions. I try to let survivors know
exactly why I am there, what the purpose of our
time together is, what they can expect, and a fairly
good idea of what I will be asking them about. Many
have told me that this approach has given them a
sense of immediate control and has helped stabilize
them. They do not want to be examined or studied.
They do not want to sit, patiently waiting for a
"loaded" question about their feelings.
They simply want to be able to express their feelings
in a confidential environment where they are not
ashamed or embarrassed and in a setting where they
do not risk losing status. This may be the most
important qualifier for many who seek help. Add
to this their need to believe that you are actually
in a position to help them, not just another person
to tell their story to. Here, the Six Keys to Stress-Free
Living™ are alive and well: challenge, choice, change,
courage, control, and commitment. Together, these
six keys are some of the greatest tools available
to assist survivors of traumatic stress.
JSV: Tell me about the international behavioral
sciences and management consulting firm, "James
T. Reese and Associates" and the Professional
Speaker's Consortium. Can you provide contact information
for our members?
JTR: James T. Reese and Associates can be contacted
at 3262 Chancellor Drive, Lake Ridge, VA USA 22192-3357
or via our website at www.jamestreese.com. Our telephone
number is 703-551-4101 or fax us at 703-494-8934.
We provide motivational keynotes, lectures, and
workshops together with seminars on stress management,
leadership, anger management, burnout prevention,
team building, mentoring, workplace violence prevention
and more. Our services also range from walking a
potentially dangerous person or employee out of
a building following a threat, to assisting in the
assessment of behavior and the construction of separation
agreements. This type of assistance was just provided
to a Midwest Fortune 500 company that employed a
person who vowed to "come back and kill all
the women." I was contracted to be on site
and this matter was resolved safely with all parties
satisfied that justice had been served (including
the subject). We also create custom-made, client-centered
zero tolerance policies for violence in the workplace,
as well as procedures to consistently and legally
enforce such a policies (as we recently prepared
for a government agency, to include its thousands
of employees and hundreds of buildings). Moreover,
James T. Reese and Associates has been in business
since 1995, incorporating 27 years of previous experience.
We enjoy what we do and believe that we are helping
increase the quality of people's lives, while increasing
the corporate bottom line. I hope some of your readers
will contact us to discuss the possibility of serving
them. We are excited about the future and we continue
to provide additional services as our clientele
expands and their needs diversify.
The Professional Speaker's Consortium has been in
existence for about a year. It allows James T. Reese
and Associates to provide speakers, presenters,
seminar leaders, and consultants on a wide range
of topics. These are individuals who have voiced
an interest in working with James T. Reese and Associates
and who have demonstrated the skills necessary to
be the very best in the business at what they do.
Our experts include corporate executives, former
military leaders, authors, police, firefighters,
human resource administrators, psychologists, psychiatrists,
nurses, employee assistance professionals, and many
other disciplines. If you're looking for a speaker,
call us.
JSV: Jim, you have given our members some very interesting
things to think about. The Academy is glad to have
you aboard.
JTR: Joe, the pleasure is mine. I am extremely honored
to have been interviewed for Trauma Response®
and am proud to be a member of the Academy.
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