This book was written based off cold, hard facts. This method wasn’t created on a whim. The information in this book is based on years of research conducted by absolute experts who have studied the ins and outs of motivational interviewing with college students. The author provides real-life examples of campus police using motivational interviewing on patrol.

Motivational Interviewing is a student-centered dialogue to guide one towards changing their behavior. The focus is to elicit and strengthen motivation for change.

• It is a way of talking to people that builds their internal motivation to change.
• It uses questions and statements to think and talk in a positive, forward direction.

The objective is not to solve the problem or even to develop a plan; the goal is to help the student resolve their ambivalence, develop some momentum and believe that change is possible.

Officers are in a unique position to talk to students. First of all, officers in uniform possess a certain level of authority or “position of power” when talking to someone just by being in uniform. Secondly, when faced with a possible enforcement situation (i.e. an underage student found in possession of alcohol), that student’s motivation to change is very high. Before that contact with the officer, the student likely was not thinking about his drinking behavior or whether he should change that behavior. There’s something about coming in contact with an officer that will often trigger thoughts about a change in behavior. Funny how that works!

“I love using motivational interviewing. I love seeing the positive impact and change it creates in both student’s and officer’s lives. Campus police already have the skills needed; by simply refocusing those skills they can completely change their impact.”

Dave Closson

Overall, the role of campus police is a very dynamic one that involves wearing a lot of hats. It’s not about just showing up and arresting the bad guys. In a typical day you can handle a wide range of complex issues including: mental disorders, medical emergencies, traffic violations, domestics, a wide gamut of drugs from pot to meth labs, lost puppies, flat tires, suicidal individuals and so on. College police are also educators who are teaching responsibility, accountability, campus safety and alcohol safety.

MI is a natural fit for this unique position on campus that allows you to educate and influence students. Your roles that make you ideally suited for MI

Any law enforcement officer who reads this book on “Motivational Interviewing” will find him/herself in a win-win situation.  The book is a quick read and will motivate the reader to peruse the material quickly in order to get to the end where there are examples to assist in the implementation of “Motivational Interviewing” (MI). Although the book is geared towards campus police officers the material and concept is beneficial to all law enforcement. If one considers the situation now involving law enforcement personnel and the public, an officer would be truly missing a chance to not only defuse a potential physical situation but also develop new and improved lines of communication with the public (albeit one at a time!) An officer can never have too many “sources of information” on the street and this book will help the officer in developing and maintaining those contacts. The public can/will develop an enhanced and positive image of law enforcement if MI is tried at an appropriate time and then followed up on. I commend the author for promoting this concept. After all  as he says “you can always do police work” but if the timing is appropriate and the subject is rational then the officer can use MI to his/her advantage and not only assist an individual in time of potential arrest but also develop the  sources of information for the future.

-Terry Lucas

Terry Lucas is a 43 year veteran of state and federal law enforcement who also enjoyed a 28 year career as an officer in the US Army and the Illinois National Guard.  Lucas served with the US Department of Justice throughout the nation and also volunteered to serve with a small Department of Justice mission in Iraq which assisted in the trial of Sadaam Hussein.  Lucas currently serves on the Executive Board of the FBI National Academy Association as the National Historian.