The Mindset of Law Enforcement Students, and Developing Intercultural Competence

Abstract

Learning about different cultures is part of language learning, and it is particularly important in the case of students learning languages for law enforcement. As future law enforcement professionals, students will encounter not only the cultures of Hungarian and foreign law enforcement organisations, but also the cultures of Hungarian and foreign citizens, victims, offenders, and even the media. Students should therefore be provided with as many intercultural learning opportunities as possible to enable them to interact effectively and appropriately with people of different cultural backgrounds, in other words, in an intercultural competent way. This study argues that developing law enforcement students’ intercultural
competence requires a specific approach because their mindset is different from that of the “average” language learner. When receiving information, the majority of law enforcement students (and professionals) tend to focus on specific information rather than associated information; and they are likely to base their decisions on facts rather than emotions. This needs to be taken into account when devising learning materials of intercultural aspects: texts/
pictures and tasks should address the head (logic) rather than the heart (emotions). The aim of this study is to propose a methodological model for developing law enforcement students’ intercultural competence with their unique mindset in mind. The model emphasises the pivotal
role of a) activity setups, b) learning materials based on the S.M.A.R.T (specific, measurable, acceptable, realistic and time) format, and c) activity debriefings. This model may be applied not only in language teaching, but also in other contexts of law enforcement education.