Abstract
Law enforcement officers are forced into stressful encounters when having to
protect their lives and the lives of others. They must be at peak performance in these
situations. An active shooting situation is among the most stressful law enforcement
officers will encounter. One effect of stress is the increase of the heart rate, Beats per
Minute (BPM). Motor skills, peripheral vision and depth perception are affected by an
increase in the heart rate. There are advantages to knowing if experience, training, age
and Body Mass Index (BMI) have an effect on the heart rate of the law enforcement
officer during a deadly force encounter. The purpose of this study is to explore the
relationship between law enforcement officer's years of experience and training and the
officer's heart rate during a deadly force encounter scenario.
