Decision Making
Exercises
Decision Making Exercises (DMEs) were created by the California Association of Tactical Officers (CATO) to enhance officer safety by allowing you and your team to “live through” an incident by having to make the same decisions the team on scene did. The Debrief is creating DMEs for most of our Critical Incident Review episodes — run the DME with your team, then listen to the full episode to see how it actually played out.
California Associationof Tactical Officers
Decision Making Exercises
Training Through Story
Decision Making Exercises (DMEs) are a training format created by the California Association of Tactical Officers (CATO) to enhance officer safety. Each DME allows you and your team to “live through” a critical incident by placing you in the position of the decision-makers on scene — forcing you to assess, decide, and act with the same information they had.
The Debrief has partnered with CATO to create DMEs for most of our Critical Incident Review episodes. Each exercise presents a real-world scenario, builds context through expert narration, then arrives at a decision node. Teams pause, discuss their options, and commit to a course of action — then resume to hear what actually happened. Run the DME first, then listen to the full episode.
Tactical Inquiry: Mastering Decision-Making
The difference between a good decision and a bad one under pressure often comes down to preparation — not just physical, but mental.
Decision-Making Exercises (DMEs) use a peer-driven model to sharpen decision-making under pressure, focusing on how people think, not just what they know. This approach is grounded in the Community of Inquiry (CoI) framework (Garrison et al., 1999), which identifies three interdependent elements essential to deep, meaningful learning.
Participants confront ambiguous scenarios under time pressure to sharpen judgment and accountability in realistic, high-stakes conditions. The goal is not to lecture — it is to create an environment where critical discourse and collaborative thinking lead to genuine knowledge construction.
Cognitive Presence
From Trigger to ResolutionScenarios act as triggering events that spark curiosity and confront participants with problems that have no easy answers. This pushes them to explore their prior knowledge, integrate new perspectives from the group, and ultimately apply what they have learned to resolve the problem at hand.
Social Presence
Cohesion Without EgoA shared purpose and open communication allow personnel to debate tactics and evaluate decisions without fear of judgment, building the group trust necessary for honest inquiry.
Teaching Presence
Facilitating Critical InquiryFacilitators guide active discourse, ensuring the training remains focused, productive, and meaningful — connecting content to the collaborative thinking process rather than simply delivering information.
Running a Session
- 01
Select & Prepare
Choose an exercise relevant to your team's training objectives. Download the facilitator guide and review the decision points and discussion prompts. Distribute any supporting documents or reference materials to participants. Set up your training environment with audio or video playback capability.
- 02
Play & Pause
Start the episode. After each section or scenario prompt, pause playback to allow the group time to discuss and respond to the specific questions presented. Ensure that all participants have a clear understanding of the scenario before beginning the discussion.
- 03
Guide the Discussion
Encourage each group to answer the specific questions thoroughly. Ensure that every participant has an opportunity to contribute — prompt quieter members to share their thoughts to foster diverse perspectives. The goal is broad participation, not just hearing from the most vocal voices.
- 04
Challenge & Correct
Listen carefully to the group's responses. Challenge answers that may cause disagreement or do not align with legal, ethical, or policy standards. Use your knowledge of best practices and national standards to steer the group back if their answers conflict with what is being trained. Emphasize adherence to law, ethics, tactical science, and department policies.
- 05
Encourage Critical Thinking
When disagreements arise, encourage the group to explore the reasons behind each stance. Push the group to justify their decisions — ask them to consider potential consequences, risks, and the balance between tactical action and safety.
- 06
Debrief
Resume the episode to learn what actually happened. Remind the group that the objective is not just to get the answer right but to understand the thought process behind each decision. Lead a structured debrief: What did we get right? What did we miss? What would we do differently? Ensure the group reflects on what they have learned and how it applies to their duties.
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