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Chermak, S., & McGarrell, E. (2004). Problem-solving approaches to homicide: An evaluation of the Indianapolis Violence Reduction Partnership. Criminal Justice Policy Review, 15(2), 161–192.

Abstract: Indianapolis experienced record levels of homicide in the mid-1990s. Officials decided to use a problem-solving strategy that modeled a successful program implemented in Boston. The Indianapolis Violence Reduction Partnership involved a coalition of criminal justice and community agencies using a problem-solving approach to violence. The strategic response included having multiple agencies respond to homicide incidents, directing resources to crimes committed by chronic offenders, and having notification meetings with high-risk probationers and parolees. This research focuses on two issues. First, we describe the impact on homicide. Second, we evaluate the effectiveness of the notification meetings. The results indicate that homicides declined, and the evaluation of the notification meetings shows that arrestees thought the criminal justice system was more effective at responding to crime, however, probationers/parolees were not less likely to recidivate compared to a matched control group. The implications for using problem-solving strategies to respond to homicide are discussed.

Questions to Consider:

1. The Indianapolis Violence Reduction Partnership involved a working group of heads of local, state, and federal criminal justice agencies. Do you think initiative successes could have been achieved without the contributions of all participating agencies? Why, or why not?
    

King, W. R. (1999). Time, constancy, and change in American municipal police organizations. Police Quarterly,2(3), 338–364.

Abstract: The present study investigates the relationship between organizational age and the structure of 334 police departments in the United States. Unfortunately, though the relationship between age and various aspects of organizations has been studied, these findings and theories have not been applied to police departments. The present study rectifies this oversight. The concept of organizational age is defined and two theories of organizational age are explained. These two theories are tested with 334 municipal American police departments using survey data and the 1990 LEMAS data. The analyses indicate that the effect of organizational age on police departments is slight; however, support is found for two theories of organizational age. First, it appears that most municipal police agencies were formed during the same era. Second, use of civilian employees is negatively related to departmental age. The implications of these findings for police agencies and police historians are discussed.

Questions to Consider:

1. Why do we continue to see the creation of new police forces nearly 200 years after the formation of the first formal police force in the United States? Are new cities and towns being incorporated, or are these new agencies formed for other reasons? Explain.
    

Phillips, S. W. (2013). Using volunteers in policing: A force field analysis of American supervisors. Police Journal,86(4), 289–306. 

Abstract: This study used a Force Field Analysis to assess the attitudes of American police supervisors regarding the use of volunteers in policing. Organisations exist in a state of quasi-stable equilibrium, and any planned change should work to identify the driving and restraining forces that function to maintain that equilibrium. For example, economic conditions may force police agencies to utilise volunteers to handle many policing tasks, but this may threaten the equilibrium of police organisations and traditional police culture. For this study a national sample of police supervisors completed a survey with attitude measures related to the use of volunteers in police work. Driving and restraining forces are identified and their strengths and weaknesses are discussed. Findings indicate that, with respect to the driving forces, the items associated with organising the community and community policing may be limited in their strength as driving forces. The power of the restraining forces indicates that the use of volunteers in policing is acceptable to this cohort of police supervisors. Aggressiveness in policing is a fairly strong restraining force. Bivariate correlation results indicate that supervisors with higher levels of education contribute to positive views of several volunteer aspects. Also, more experienced police supervisors do not feel volunteers are more trouble than they are worth. There appears to be a strong relationship between the need for volunteers as part of an agency’s community policing philosophy, and volunteers are seen as important to reducing crime and disorder. Finally, several significant results suggest that volunteers are accepted within the police culture.

Questions to Consider:

1. The article is written from the perspective of the organization, with a focus on the restraining and driving forces that affect the use of volunteers in policing. Do you suppose that prospective volunteers also consider these factors (e.g., the receptivity of officers to volunteers) when making a decision to volunteer for service? How can a department encourage volunteerism, emphasizing the driving forces?

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Bishopp, S. A., Klinger, D. A., & Morris, R. G. (2015). An examination of the effect of a policy change on police use of TASERs. Criminal Justice Policy Review, 26(7), 727–746.

Abstract: The role that department policy plays in shaping how police officers exercise their discretionary powers to use physical force against citizens is a critical issue in the American justice system. Research has established that department policies regarding officers’ use of deadly force effected firearm use and led to reductions in incidents of officers discharging their weapon. There is a noticeable lack of similar evidence on the effects of policy changes regarding the use of non-lethal force. This study describes the results of an assessment of the effect that a change in policy governing a specific type of non-lethal force—TASERs—in one major police department had on officers’ use of the device. The results show that a move to a more restrictive TASER policy led to a reduction in TASER use. The study also reports on the role that factors besides policy play in officers’ TASER usage.

Questions to Consider:

1. The Dallas Police Department increasingly formalized procedures related to Taser deployment, resulting in a reduction in use. If officers were facing a similar risk and dealing with similar crimes during the period, how do you suppose they dealt with noncompliant suspects given the restrictions on Taser use?
    

Hughes, A. G., & Teodoro, M. P. (2013). Assessing professionalism: Street-level attitudes and agency accreditation. State and Local Government Review, 45(1), 36–45.

Abstract: Professional organizations now accredit state and local agencies across several fields. This article investigates the attitudes of street-level bureaucrats toward their agencies and the tasks required of them in accredited and nonaccredited agencies. If accreditation changes bureaucratic attitudes in ways that build a sense of mission or shape functional preferences, it could lead to more effective public service delivery. The empirical subjects of this study are American municipal police departments and the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEAs). Analysis of quasi-experimental data from a survey of officers suggests that accreditation helps build a sense of mission at the street level but finds little evidence of an effect on functional preferences.

Questions to Consider:

1. To achieve national police accreditation takes an organizational investment of time and money. If, for the sake of argument, the primary benefit is reputational—the agency is believed to be well quipped and employ officers of a higher standard—is the investment worth it, even if accreditation results in little change in actual street-level behavior?
    

Lombardo, R., & Olson, D. (2009). Organizational approaches to drug law enforcement by local police departments in the United States: Specialized drug units and participation in multi-agency drug task forces.Justice Research and Policy, 11, 45–75.

Abstract: This paper examines the factors associated with the decision of local police departments in the United States to operate specialized drug units or to participate in multi-jurisdictional drug task forces. Combining data from the Law Enforcement Management and Administrative Statistics (LEMAS) Survey, the 2000 Census, and the Uniform Crime Report, we use both bivariate and multivariate methods to conduct the analysis. The findings indicate that county-level agencies, those with other formalized drug control efforts, high levels of violent crime, high degrees of task specialization and formalization, and high proportions of the resident population accounted for by renters were more likely to operate drug units, participate in multi-agency drug task forces, and allocate more officers per capita to these efforts.

Questions to Consider:

1. Researchers found that agencies with drug enforcement special units were also more likely to participate in multiagency drug task forces. Do you believe that these structures and relationships with other agencies absolve the general members of the organization from concentrating on drug law enforcement? After all, two dedicated bodies—a special unit and task force—focus on the issue.

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Burruss, G. W., & Giblin, M. J. (2014). Modeling isomorphism on policing innovation: The role of institutional pressures in adopting community-oriented policing. Crime and Delinquency, 60(3), 331–355.

Abstract: Recent research on innovation diffusion points to a number of key factors that stimulate the need for change or facilitate the adoption of innovations. Empirical studies examining the process of innovation—that is, how ideas are spread—are less common and often lack a theoretical foundation. The present study uses institutional theory to develop a model of community-policing adoption in municipal law enforcement agencies. The fit of the institutional model is assessed using secondary data and structural equation modeling. The results show that centrist forces—including publications, the professionalization of law enforcement, and other law enforcement agencies—shape the organizational adoption of community-policing reforms. The implications of the research for communicating innovations are addressed.

Questions to Consider:

1. The research showed that the institutional environment influenced the adoption of community-policing reforms. Are some police leaders more likely to be attuned to institutional messages—reading journals and books or attending conferences, for example—than others? What factors lead some leaders to pay attention to these sources?
    

Freeman, N. J., & Sandler, J. C. (2010). The Adam Walsh Act: A false sense of security or an effective public policy initiative? Criminal Justice Policy Review, 21(1), 31–49.

Abstract: With the enactment of the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act (AWA), states are required to standardize their registration and community notification practices by categorizing sex offenders into three tier levels in the interest of increasing public safety. No empirical research, however, has investigated whether implementation of the AWA is likely to increase public safety. Using a sample of registered sex offenders in New York State, the current study examined the effectiveness of the Adam Walsh tier system to classify offenders by likelihood of recidivism. Results indicated that the AWA falls short of increasing public safety. In fact, registered sex offenders classified by AWA as Tier 1 (lowest risk) were rearrested for both nonsexual and sexual offenses more than sex offenders in Tier 2 (moderate risk) or Tier 3 (highest risk).

Questions to Consider:

1. State adoption of the provisions of AWA has been relatively slow. Do you think nonadopting states are more influenced by the costs of implementation or the effectiveness of the law itself? Explain.
    

King, W. R. (2009). Toward a life-course perspective of police organizations. Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency, 46(2), 213–244.

Abstract: The author prescribes and describes a new, temporally rich organizational perspective: a life-course perspective of police organizations. This perspective will contribute to more informative tests of existing organizational theories by improving understanding of how police agencies change and resist change, and the role of process. The author describes the life-course perspective and how a life-course perspective yields more informative tests of existing organizational theories and advances understanding of police organizations. Six events along the organizational life course are reviewed (creation, early founding effects, growth periods, declining periods, crisis, and organizational disbanding). Finally, two advantages of this perspective are discussed, as well as the temporal orientations of life-course research.

Questions to Consider:

1. Given recent calls for reform in policing from the public, government officials, and others, do you think that newly formed police agencies will be imprinted with certain characteristics not found in existing police organizations? In other words, will certain characteristics be more likely to appear in new rather than extant departments? If so, identify some of these organizational features.

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Chappell, A. T., & Lanza-Kaduce, L. (2010). Police academy socialization: Understanding the lessons learned in a paramilitary-bureaucratic organization. Journal of Contemporary Ethnography, 39(2), 187–214.

Abstract: Even as community policing has emerged as the dominant paradigm, research indicates that police agencies continue to be highly militaristic and bureaucratic in structure and culture. This article reports findings from an observational study of recruit training at a police academy that had introduced a new curriculum emphasizing community policing and problem solving. The article explores the socialization that takes place there to see how the tension between traditional and community policing is resolved. The authors found that despite the philosophical emphasis on community policing and its themes of decentralization and flexibility, the most salient lessons learned in police training were those that reinforced the paramilitary structure and culture.

Questions to Consider:

1. Recently, practitioners and scholars have argued that police academy training may be the initial source of attitudes and behaviors that contribute to police–community tensions. Based on the research by Chappell and Lanza-Kaduce, do you think the paramilitary nature of the training academy may be detrimental to police–community relations? Why, or why not? Would ridding the academy of the boot camp–like model help or hurt the overall quality of policing?
    

Ford, R. E. (2003). Saying one thing, meaning another: The role of parables in police training. Police Quarterly,6(1), 84–110.

Abstract: Research suggests that police recruits come to policing with high ideals and positive ethical standards. Yet as early as the police academy, subtle shifts in recruit attitudes and values occur. By the end of the rookie year, this ethical value shift is almost complete, and it has negative ethical implications. This ethical value shift places many officers in conflict with a number of legal standards and core societal values. Although research has identified these outcomes, there is only limited understanding of the processes that fuel these ethical value shifts. This article presents exploratory research in police socialization processes and identifies process mechanisms that trigger a number of these value shifts. Structural elements in policing training that sustain these mechanisms are analyzed.

Questions to Consider:

1. According to the author, “Media tales take rare events and magnify and describe heroic stories as the everyday grist of police work” (p. 87). Do war stories do the same thing? Are these stories descriptions of the routine incidents of police work, or do they serve to emphasize extreme or rare encounters? Explain.
    

White, M. D. (2008). Identifying good cops early: Predicting recruit performance in the academy. Police Quarterly, 11(1), 27–49.

Abstract: Police departments have traditionally assessed their performance through crime-related activity measures that often have little to do with good police work and offer little hope for prediction of exemplary performance. This article suggests some progress can be made in predicting superior performance by considering an earlier stage in a police officer’s career where performance is well-defined and measurable: the police academy. Using recruit performance data (n = 1,556) from a large metropolitan police department, the article uses linear and logistic regression, as well as Chi-square Automatic Indicator Detector (CHIAD), to identify predictors of superior performance in the academy. A number of interesting findings emerge with regard to factors that offer predictive value—reading level, age, gender, and race—and those that do not—college education, military experience, and residency. The article concludes with a discussion of the implications for recruitment, selection, and training, as well as for measuring and predicting performance on the street.

Questions to Consider:

1. According to the research study, higher reading levels were associated with higher overall performance on classroom-based evaluations. Do you believe that reading level would be equally important in predicting recruit performance outside of class, in areas such as defensive driving and firearm proficiency? Explain.

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Gau, J. M., Terrill, W., & Paoline, E. A. (2013). Looking up: Explaining police promotional aspirations. Criminal Justice and Behavior, 40(3), 247–269.

Abstract: Organizations benefit when employees are motivated and aspiring. Within policing, this is especially important given contemporary philosophies asking officers to take ownership and be proactive. A desire to ascend through the police ranks may inspire greater engagement in the police role. Extant research has noted that promotional aspirations vary among police officers, but unknown at this point are the factors that shape this variation. The current study helps fill this void by analyzing multiple-agency data assessing the impact of demographic, work environment, and organizational factors on patrol officers’ aspirations. The focus is on the importance officers place on being promoted to a higher rank (i.e., valence), as well as their long-term aspirations in terms of projected rank at retirement. The findings reveal that the most consistent predictors are gender, race, education, and experience; job satisfaction; and organizational size. The implications of these findings for police research and practice are considered.

Questions to Consider:

1. We tend to take the promotional process for granted, assuming that qualified applicants will naturally seek elevated ranks. As the research shows, however, this is not the case. If you were a chief or other upper-level administrator in a police organization, how might you change the organization and/or its culture to encourage a greater number of female officers to pursue promotion?
    

Johnson, R. R. (2006). Management influences on officer traffic enforcement productivity. International Journal of Police Science & Management, 8(3), 205–217.

Abstract: There is significant evidence that aggressive traffic enforcement strategies can have an impact on traffic safety, public disorder and street crime. However, individual patrol officers often devote different levels of effort to traffic patrol with some producing very high levels of citations and arrests, while others produce few or none at all. Therefore, it would be useful for police executives to know how they can effectively motivate officers to engage in high levels of traffic enforcement. This study evaluates a theoretical approach to motivating patrol officer productivity in the areas of traffic citations and drunk driver arrests, and applies this approach across a number of police agencies in one metropolitan area. The findings support this approach and suggest that patrol officer productivity in these two performance tasks is significantly predicted by management expectations, officer capability, officer opportunity, the perception of rewards, and the modelling of the behaviour by the officer’s shift supervisor.

Questions to Consider:

1. Johnson’s research points to the importance of opportunity and capability in understanding an officer’s motivation to engage in traffic enforcement activity. Would an officer with neither the training nor the chance to perform feel a sense of injustice for having a diminished chance to receive departmental rewards relative to others? Explain.
    

Wolfe, S. E., & Piquero, A. R. (2011). Organizational justice and police misconduct. Criminal Justice and Behavior,38(4), 332–353.

Abstract: Although police misconduct has interested policing scholars for many years, extant research has been largely atheoretical and has ignored the role of organizational justice in understanding the behavior. This study uses survey data from a random sample of 483 police officers employed in the Philadelphia Police Department to explore the role of organizational justice in police misconduct. Results indicate that officers who view their agency as fair and just in managerial practices are less likely to adhere to the code of silence or believe that police corruption in pursuit of a noble cause is justified. Furthermore, perceptions of organizational justice are associated with lower levels of engagement in several forms of police misconduct. The results suggest that organizational justice is a promising framework to understand police misconduct and may help guide police administrators in the implementation of effective management strategies to reduce the incidence of the behavior.

Questions to Consider:

1. The study’s authors found that perceptions of organizational justice reduced police misconduct and negative attitudes. Although the authors considered organizational justice as a singular concept, do you think that one of the justice components—distributive, procedural, or interactional—has a greater effect on officer behavior and attitudes than the others? Why?

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Andreescu, V., & Vito, G. F. (2010). An exploratory study on ideal leadership behaviour: The opinions of American police managers. International Journal of Police Science & Management, 12(4), 567–583.

Abstract: This study examines the perceived ideal leadership behaviour in police organisations. It is based on a survey of 126 police managers from 23 US States who attended the Administrative Officers Course at the Southern Police Institute during the academic year 2007–2008. The questionnaire used in this investigation includes the Leader Behaviour Description Questionnaire Form XII (Stodgill, 1963). The main objectives of this exploratory analysis are to rank the importance of leadership characteristics based on police officers’ perceptions, to create a typology of leadership styles preferred, and to identify the demographic factors that are most likely to influence variations in opinions regarding the behaviour of an ideal police leader. This research shows that individual characteristics can influence not only managerial styles, but also leadership preferences. In particular, results imply that gender and race play an important role in structuring leadership preferences. Female police officers do not appear to differ from men in their preferences for a predominantly task-centred and structured leadership. However, women seem to favour more than men do: (1) a type of leader who can be considered ‘transformational’; or (2) a more democratic, worker-oriented leader, who would allow subordinates freedom of action and would respond well to the followers’ concerns. Compared with Whites and other racial minorities, African American police officers tend to favour more a structured task-centred leadership orientation or a leadership style described as transformational.

Questions to Consider:

1. Consider the list of most important leadership characteristics identified by Andreescu and Vito. Can a police leader be taught any of these characteristics? If so, which ones? Are some of the characteristics innate and, therefore, unteachable? Again, which ones?
    

Engel, R. S. (2000). The effects of supervisory styles on patrol officer behavior. Police Quarterly, 3(3), 262–293.

Abstract: Do patrol sergeants’ supervisory styles influence patrol officer behavior? This question is addressed by examining data collected for the Project on Policing Neighborhoods, a systematic observational study of patrol officers and first-line supervisors in two metropolitan police departments in 1996 and 1997. Using four distinct supervisory styles created through factor analysis of attitudinal constructs identified in the management and policing literatures, the influence of different supervisory styles over patrol officer behaviors—arrest, use of force, and issuing citations—is assessed. Findings show that at least one supervisory style has a significant influence over the likelihood that officers will use force against suspects. Furthermore, the presence of a supervisor (regardless of supervisory style) significantly increases the likelihood that officers will arrest. Implications for policy and future research are explored.

Questions to Consider:

1. The research showed that a supervisor’s presence at the scene increased the likelihood of arrest of nontraffic suspects. Do you think that supervisor presence would have the effect of encouraging desirable behavior in other matters, such as problem solving, community engagement, or service, or is the effect of supervisor presence limited to only law enforcement behaviors? Explain.
    

Rainguet, F. W., & Dodge, M. (2001). The problems of police chiefs: An examination of the issues in tenure and turnover. Police Quarterly, 4(3), 268–288.

Abstract: The alarmingly high rates of police chief turnover have created concern in the public and private sectors. The average police chief tenure is discussed in public administration circles as being dangerously short, but there is little evidence of exactly why this is so. The position, in major cities and small towns, has become a virtual “revolving door” that results in numerous expenses for local agencies. This article explores factors related to short tenures for police executives. This exploratory research is based on in-depth interviews with former and incumbent chiefs. The data reveal that health concerns, stress, politics, and personnel issues are related to short tenures.

Questions to Consider:

1. If leadership is, in part, about establishing a long-term vision for an organization, does frequent turnover inevitably weaken police departments? Are organizations able to overcome turnover in upper-level personnel without dramatically altering long-term goals, planned organizational changes, or the department’s vision?

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Culhane, S. E., Boman, J. H., & Schweitzer, K. (2016). Public perceptions of the justifiability of police shootings: The role of body cameras in a pre- and post-Ferguson experiment. Police Quarterly, 19(3), 251–274.

Abstract: We conducted two studies, wherein participants from across the United States watched, heard, or read the transcript of an actual police shooting event. The data for Study 1 were collected prior to media coverage of a widely publicized police shooting in Ferguson, Missouri. Results indicated that participants who could hear or see the event were significantly more likely to perceive the shooting was justified than they were when they read a transcript of the encounter. Shortly after the events in Ferguson, Missouri, we replicated the first study, finding quite different results. Although dissatisfaction with the shooting was seen in all forms of presentation, video evidence produced the highest citizen perceptions of an unjustified shooting and audio evidence produced the least. Citizens were nonetheless overwhelmingly favorable to requiring police to use body cameras. Body-mounted cameras with high-quality audio capabilities are recommended for police departments to consider.

Questions to Consider:

1. An actual video of a fatal police-involved shooting served as the experimental condition in the study. Do you believe the source of the video footage makes a difference when it comes to citizen attitudes (e.g., the justifiability of police actions)? For instance, do you believe that citizens attach more, less, or equal weight to body-worn camera footage of a police–citizen contact than they do to bystander footage of contacts? Explain.
    

Mastrofski, S. D., Snipes, J. B., & Supina, A. E. (1996). Compliance on demand: The public’s response to specific police requests. Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency, 33, 269–305.

Abstract: Police often attempt to restore order and prevent illegal activity by calling on citizens to alter their behavior. Achieving compliance in these circumstances is an important test of officers’ skills and an essential element of effective governance. This article assesses citizen compliance with specific police requests for orderly, legal behavior in 346 encounters observed in Richmond, Virginia. Citizens were compliant in 78% of the encounters. The effects on compliance of several potential influences are estimated in a logistic regression model: instrumental factors concerning the calculation of outcomes for the citizens, factors about the legitimacy of the police intervention, personal characteristics reflecting the citizens’ social status and predisposition to compliance, and the officers’ skill and work orientation. Significant effects are found in each category of variables, but the results are in some cases contrary to expectations. Legitimating factors, citizens’ social status, and police skill and work orientation show particularly strong effects. Implications of these findings for future research are discussed.

Questions to Consider:

1. In recent years, the public, the media, and policy makers have expressed considerable concern about police use of force, particularly deadly force. Given the results of the study, how might police officers be trained so that citizen compliance is more likely?
    

Terrill, W. (2003). Police use of force and suspect resistance: The micro process of the police–suspect encounter. Police Quarterly, 6(1), 51–83.

Abstract: Using data collected as part of an observational study of the police in Indianapolis, Indiana, and St. Petersburg, Florida, this research examines 3,544 police–suspect encounters in an attempt to better understand the application of nonlethal force and the relationship between officer use of force and suspect resistance. More specifically, it examines the extent of and variation in force and resistance and the interplay between the two. Results show that when both verbal and physical forms of coercion are considered, force occurs quite frequently—in more than half of all encounters. Conversely, suspects displayed some form of resistance in 12% of all encounters. When multiple uses of force and resistance within individual encounters are considered, the frequency of both behaviors increases substantially. In addition, a majority of both forceful and resistant behaviors fall on the lower end of continuum (e.g., verbal commands as opposed to striking with a baton). Encounters that began with some form of force resulted in a greater frequency of subsequent suspect resistance and an increased use of additional force at some later point in the encounters—calling into question the utility of a “take charge” approach to maintaining control within police–suspect encounters.

Questions to Consider:

1. If police encounters are dynamic, and the interaction between officer and citizen matters in shaping the behavior of both parties, how should officers approach suspects to ensure their own safety and citizen compliance without increasing the likelihood of resistance? How should these outcomes be balanced?

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Bell, L. B., Virden, T. B., Lewis, D. J., & Cassidy, B. A. (2015). Effects of 13-hour 20-minute work shifts on law enforcement officers’ sleep, cognitive abilities, health, quality of life, and work performance: The Phoenix study. Police Quarterly, 18(3), 293–337.

Abstract: To determine the impact of a longer-than-average compressed workweek on police officers’ sleep, cognitive abilities, health, quality of life, and work performance, two precincts of the Phoenix Police Department participated in a 9-month, repeated-measures study. The experimental precinct worked three consecutive 13-hr 20-min (13:20-hr) shifts per week for 6 months, while the control precinct worked four 10-hr shifts per week. Officers were assessed using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, Psychomotor Vigilance Test, STROOP Color-Word test, Quality of Life Inventory, and measures of salivary cortisol. The Phoenix Police Department provided data for Professional Standards Bureau complaints, shooting qualifications, vehicular accidents, self-initiated calls, adult bookings, field interrogations, overtime, and time off for the 6 months of the study period and the same 6 months of the previous year. Self-reported caffeine intake and shift preference were also collected. Officers working 13:20-hr shifts experienced significant (p < .05) decreases in hours of sleep, overall quality of sleep, concentration, cognitive processing, and quality of life (overall and in six of eight subareas). Significant (p < .05) increases were observed in fatigue, daytime dysfunction due to sleepiness, reaction time, anticipatory errors, and Professional Standards Bureau complaints. There were no significant differences in most indices of work performance or differences due to working day or night shifts. When officers working 13:20-hr shifts returned to 10-hr shifts, all variables returned to baseline (prestudy) levels. Officers from both precincts overwhelmingly preferred 10-hr shifts. This study indicates that there are no apparent advantages but considerable liabilities associated with 13:20-hr shifts for police officers.

Questions to Consider:

1. In police organizations where collective bargaining is authorized, work hours, including shift lengths, are generally determined through negotiations between bargaining units and administration. Should the results of this study (and others) preclude agreements specifying longer work shifts and more days off even if it goes against the wishes of the members of the bargaining unit? Stated differently, should empirical research override employee or union preferences (assuming employees or the union prefer longer shifts)?
    

Huey, L. (2010). “I’ve seen this on CSI”: Criminal investigators’ perceptions about the management of public expectations in the field. Crime, Media, Culture, 6(1), 49–68.

Abstract: Police perceptions as to the influence of CSI and similar forensic and/or police procedural television programs on public expectations of the investigative process in the field is the focus of the present study. Through qualitative interviews with 31 members of Canadian police forces, I explore the question of whether police investigative personnel view media representations of their work as negatively influencing public expectations, thereby creating a source of occupational role strain for police officers. What is revealed is that the majority of investigative personnel interviewed have experienced citizen queries and demands attributed to consumption of unrealistic images of police work in television programs. Where a minority of investigators report feelings of frustration due to the role strain associated with having their expert knowledge and work methods questioned, the majority of those interviewed saw such queries as opportunities for educating the public about the realities of policing.

Questions to Consider:

1. While it may seem obvious that television programs such as CSI are fictional, viewers may not fully appreciate the gaps between fact and fiction. For instance, some may see the story lines, rather than the investigatory procedures, as manufactured by writers. Do producers have any obligation to notify viewers of what is fictional to better align expectations with realities?
    

McCarty, W. P., & Skogan, W. G. (2013). Job-related burnout among civilian and sworn police personnel. Police Quarterly, 16(1), 66–84.

Abstract: Employee burnout can affect workers’ health, motivation, and job performance, and speed staff turnover. In law enforcement, burnout has been attributed to a variety of job-related, organizational, and personal factors, ranging from the danger inherent to the job to the liabilities of late shift work, tension with supervisors, and gender relations in the organization. Overlooked in almost all of these studies has been the place of civilians in police work, and how their burnout experiences differ from—or resemble—those of their sworn counterparts. This study is based on surveys of both sworn and civilian employees of 12 police agencies from across the United States. In the survey they described their extent of emotional exhaustion, and reported on features of their lives and work that have been hypothesized to magnify or minimize this stress reaction. The study found that the burnout process is a universal one, driven by virtually the same factors among both civilians and sworn officers. Difficulties balancing work and life responsibilities, the support they receive from coworkers and supervisors, the fairness of personnel policies, and several personal factors contributed to burnout levels. The implications of these findings for both research and practice are also explored.

Questions to Consider:

1. The results suggest that civilian and sworn employees within police departments experience similar levels of burnout. Yet civilians reported lower levels of social support than their sworn counterparts. How might organizations foster a greater sense of support and camaraderie among civilian employees and across employee groups in order to minimize burnout?

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Corsaro, N., Brunson, R. K., & McGarrell, E. F. (2013). Problem-oriented policing and open-air drug markets: Examining the Rockford pulling levers deterrence strategy. Crime & Delinquency, 59(7), 1085–1107.

Abstract: Problem-oriented policing strategies have been regarded as promising approaches for disrupting open-air drug markets in vulnerable communities. Pulling levers deterrence interventions, which are consistent with the problem-oriented framework, have shown potential as an effective mechanism for reducing and preventing youth, gun, and gang violence. This study examines the effect of a strategic, pulling levers intervention that was implemented by law enforcement officials in Rockford, Illinois, to address drug markets in a high crime neighborhood. The initiative builds on a similar effort developed in High Point, North Carolina, and represents an extension of pulling levers that was originally developed in Boston. The impact evaluation uses a mixed method of quantitative hierarchical growth curve models and qualitative interviews with residents. Study findings suggest that the Rockford strategy was associated with a statistically significant and substantive reduction in crime, drug, and nuisance offenses in the target neighborhood. Results from this examination have implications for both research and public policy.

Questions to Consider:

1. In Rockford, the pulling-levers deterrence message and social services were provided to a small group of five suspected drug offenders. Do you think that there is a critical mass of offenders that must be reached for the pulling-levers strategy to work? Would you assume that reaching additional offenders is more beneficial, or is it safe to assume that those reached will communicate with others the consequences of continued offending?
    

Lum, C., Telep, C. W., Koper, C. S., & Grieco, J. (2012). Receptivity to research in policing. Justice Research and Policy, 14(1), 61–95.

Abstract: Evidence-based policing—using research and scientific processes to inform police decisions—is a complex approach to policing that involves various challenges. One primary difficulty is how research can be translated into digestible and familiar forms for practitioners. A central part of successful translation is the receptivity of decision makers to research as well as how research is presented and packaged to increase receptivity. In this article we first discuss the complexity of evidence-based policing, highlighting the much-lamented gap between research and practice. We review research from other disciplines and also in policing about what contributes to research being better received and used by practitioners. We then describe our own receptivity survey, offering preliminary findings about the receptivity of officers to research, researchers, and tactics influenced by research. Finally, we conclude with examples of the types of efforts practitioners and researchers can engage in that might improve receptivity to research. Specifically, we discuss the Evidence-Based Policing Matrix as a research translation tool, as well as multiple demonstrations conducted by the authors that focus on institutionalizing the use of research into daily police activities.

Questions to Consider:

1. The authors do not offer higher education as a cure-all to some of the challenges of translating research into policy. Nevertheless, do you believe that a college degree fosters a greater appreciation for science, more generally? Does a degree in a criminal-justice-related field help with translating research into practice for those who enter the policing field? Explain.
    

Willis, J. J. (2013). First-line supervision and strategic decision making under Compstat and community policing.Criminal Justice Policy Review, 24(2), 235–256.

Abstract: Compstat and community policing are powerful movements in U.S. police reform. Although different in important respects, both are heralded for being strategic, or strengthening a police organization’s capacity to detect changes in crime and disorder and respond effectively. Using data from six focus groups, this study examines how first-line supervisors reported making decisions and offering guidance on crime and disorder problems. Its major finding is that co-implementation of these reforms had affected supervision unevenly. A challenge to policymakers and researchers is to reconsider how patrol supervision in co-implementing departments might be restructured to strengthen the strategic dimensions of both reforms.

Questions to Consider:

1. Many of the discussions of accountability in CompStat center on upper-level managers, not frontline supervisors. Is it possibility to dramatically increase a sergeant’s accountability for officer performance when the sergeant, unlike a precinct commander, is less likely to be questioned by superiors? How?

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Cheurprakobkit, S., & Bartsch, R. A. (2001). Police performance: A model for assessing citizens’ satisfaction and the importance of police attributes. Police Quarterly, 4(4), 449–468.

Abstract: This study examined the attitudes of 581 residents of Midland and Odessa, Texas regarding their satisfaction with 14 police attributes and the importance of these attributes. Descriptive findings showed the citizens are generally satisfied with police performance but still rated the importance of attributes higher than the satisfaction. The satisfaction–importance graph revealed that the professional conduct factor (professional knowledge, professional conduct, honesty, quality of service, and fairness) received relatively higher satisfaction and importance scores compared to the friendliness factor (friendliness, putting one at ease, concern, politeness, and helpfulness) and the crime control/prevention factor (level of police protection, investigative skill, ability to fight crime, and ability to prevent crime). The friendliness factor received relatively moderate satisfaction scores as did the crime control/prevention factor but was considered the least important among the three factors. Finally, the findings showed the attribute that needs the most improvement is the ability to prevent crime.

Questions to Consider:

1. Citizens tended to rate crime control and prevention as important, but satisfaction tended to be modest. Unlike the other two dimensions of performance (friendliness and professional conduct), success at crime control and prevention is arguably only partially within the control of the police (for example, other system actors play a role). Can police departments still maintain strong community support through friendly and professional behavior even if they are perceived as deficient in their ability to control crime? Is controlling and preventing crime an essential measure of police performance?
    

Lilley, D., & Hinduja, S. (2006). Organizational values and police officer evaluation: A content comparison between traditional and community policing agencies. Police Quarterly, 9(4), 486–513.

Abstract: Although criminal justice literature has suggested that the values and objectives of the community policing philosophy differ from traditional law enforcement, little is known about the specifics of how this approach may have changed formal performance expectations for individual officers. This study incorporates a content analysis of 1,474 individual rating items on 150 officer evaluation instruments from agencies across the United States to determine whether organizational values and performance criteria differ between traditional and community policing agencies. Evaluation content was compared according to five key officer appraisal elements: (a) stakeholder focus, (b) police officer role emphasis, (c) level of service expectation, (d) employee traits encouraged, and (e) type of reinforcement (motivation) utilized. Results indicate that most evaluation content remains focused on the organization, emphasizes internal process aspects of performance, and has little to do with investigation, enforcement, patrol, community service, or other forms of activities that are specific to police work.

Questions to Consider:

1. Are community policing and problem-solving behaviors as easily measured or quantified as traditional law enforcement behaviors? Could the general similarities between community-policing agencies and traditional agencies be explained by an inability to measure community-policing concepts?
    

Williams, B. N., Christensen, R. K., LePere-Schloop, M., & Silk, P. D. (2015). Appraising the appraisal process: Manager and patrol officer perspectives. Police Journal, 88(3), 231–250.

Abstract: While research shows that performance appraisals are important both as management tools and for their ability to shape organisational commitment and performance, researchers have also noted a ‘pervasive dissatisfaction’ (Coutts and Schneider, 2004: 68) with appraisals in policing. The standardisation of performance appraisal systems across local government departments in the United States may contribute to this dissatisfaction. Standardised forms may be difficult to adapt to diverse officer positions, and to the overall goals of police departments and agencies. This paper uses appraiser and appraisee survey data from a police department in a mid-sized southern city in the United States to examine whether standardised performance appraisal systems in local government meet the needs of local police departments and agencies. Findings suggest that it is important to tailor appraisal forms and systems by including officers and managers in the development of job-specific rubrics and training modules.

Questions to Consider:

1. If research suggests that appraisers and appraisees are more satisfied when they participated in the development of performance appraisal systems, should they also be involved in setting the goals of the organization, the foundation on which performance appraisals rest? Explain.

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Best, D., & Eves, K. (2005). Why are there no lessons learned from road traffic incidents involving the police?Criminal Justice, 5(1), 37–53.

Abstract: An analysis of 64 investigations of pursuits undertaken by the police between 1998 and 2001, resulting in 71 deaths, highlighted a number of concerns about the post-incident management of pursuits by police forces in England and Wales. The current article examines the investigations from the same set of incidents to assess what actions the police forces have taken to prevent such incidents from occurring in future. However, evidence of learning is sparse—with few officers disciplined for their actions, infrequent recommendations for policy change and little sign of systematic organizational learning. The article concludes by considering the consequences for organizational culture of this apparent learning failure and challenges the effectiveness of the current system and the willingness of police forces to change their practices in the light of such large numbers of police-related fatalities.

Questions to Consider:

1. The National Institute of Justice has promoted the idea of sentinel event reviews—postevent investigations of organizational accidents to facilitate learning and the prevention of future incidents. As the findings by Best and Eves indicate, actual learning from investigations seldom takes place. How can departments foster a culture of learning so that reviews are viewed as an opportunity for organizational improvement, not an opportunity for finger-pointing and punishment?
    

Maguire, E. R., King, W. R., Wells, W., & Katz, C. M. (2015). Potential unintended consequences of the movement toward forensic laboratory independence. Police Quarterly, 18(3), 272–292.

Abstract: The scholarly literature identifies two types of errors of justice: errors of due process and errors of impunity. Errors of due process involve failing to protect the innocent from becoming ensnared in the criminal justice process or imposing excessive sanctions on offenders. Errors of impunity involve failing to sanction, or imposing insufficient sanctions, on culpable offenders. The great challenge in designing criminal justice systems is balancing these two types of errors. We contend that the National Research Council’s recent recommendation to remove crime laboratories from law enforcement agencies in the United States focuses too heavily on avoiding one type of error while largely ignoring the other. We believe that heeding this recommendation without appropriate caution might produce an imbalance that generates serious unintended consequences. We draw on recent studies of how crime labs and law enforcement agencies process sexual assault kits and ballistic evidence to illustrate the potential unintended consequences of separating crime labs from law enforcement agencies.

Questions to Consider:

1. The National Research Council’s recommendation to remove forensic crime labs from the administrative control of police departments was at least partially driven by the belief that connections between the police and crime labs could bias results. Do you agree with this view? Are forensic analyses produced from a police department–affiliated lab any more or less credible than analyses produced by an independent lab?
    

White, M. D. (2000). Assessing the impact of administrative policy on use of deadly force by on- and off-duty police. Evaluation Review, 24(3), 295–318.

Abstract: Deadly force research typically does not distinguish between shootings by on-duty and off-duty police. This article uses Philadelphia police shooting data from two time periods (1970–1978 and 1987–1992) and a unique quasi-experimental design to examine the comparative effects upon on- and off-duty police shootings of an administrative policy that limited police shooting discretion but that did not address questions of police weapons carrying and access to firearms. The article draws important distinctions between when to shoot and carry administrative policies and considers their impact on deadly force by on- and off-duty police.

Questions to Consider:

1. It is frequently said that the nature of police work (e.g., unpredictability and autonomy) creates difficulties in controlling discretion, but White’s research indicates that discretion may be effectively controlled by administrative policy. Do you think that such control is limited only to behaviors with significant consequences—in this case, the life of another—or do you think administrative policy is an important determinant of overall police behavior? Explain.

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Chanin, J. M. (2015). Examining the sustainability of pattern or practice police misconduct reform. Police Quarterly, 18(2), 163–192.

Section 14141 of the Violent Crime Act of 1994 fundamentally restructures the regulation of police behavior in the United States. Since the law’s passage, dozens of police departments have undergone lengthy and complex reforms designed to eliminate a pattern or practice of misconduct. Despite the program’s wide application, neither scholars nor practitioners know much about the efficacy or sustainability of these reforms. This article draws on longitudinal data across several outcome metrics, including citizen complaints, use of force incidence, and civil litigation, and a series of interviews with key stakeholders to examine pattern or practice initiatives in Pittsburgh, PA; Washington, DC; and Cincinnati, OH. Findings suggest that the reform process has the ability to minimize unwanted police misconduct and generate desirable policy outcomes, particularly during the period of Department of Justice oversight. Sustaining these reforms after the settlement agreement is dissolved, however, has proved a challenge.

Questions to Consider:

1. Given the resistance to externally imposed change by rank-and-file employees and the difficulties in sustaining reforms over time, how can officers (the operating core) be encouraged to see the need for change on their own without succumbing to fear, anxiety, custom, or other inhibitors?
    

Gau, J. M. (2013). Consent searches as a threat to procedural justice and police legitimacy: An analysis of consent requests during traffic stops. Criminal Justice Policy Review, 24(6), 759–777.

Abstract: Consent searches during traffic stops offer police a way to expediently check motorists’ vehicles for contraband. Asking drivers for consent to search their vehicles, however, may cause them to feel negatively about the encounter and, consequently, to question officers’ motives for pulling them over. The present study analyzes stopped motorists’ reactions to consent requests; specifically, consent requests are theorized to damage these individuals’ perceptions of procedural justice and, moreover, of the legitimacy of the stop itself. Logistic regression analyses of a nationally representative sample support these hypotheses. Policy implications include the need for judicious use of consent searches, as they appear to be a form of procedural injustice that erodes police legitimacy.

Questions to Consider:

1. Police officers sometimes stop drivers for traffic-related infractions even though their real interest is investigating some type of criminal conduct. In this case, the traffic stop serves as a pretext for the investigation. Asking for consent to search only furthers that investigatory goal. Should greater restrictions be placed on pretextual stops? Why, or why not?
    

Payne, B. K. (2006). Weapon bias: Split-second decisions and unintended stereotyping. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 15(6), 287–291.

Abstract: Race stereotypes can lead people to claim to see a weapon where there is none. Split-second decisions magnify the bias by limiting people’s ability to control responses. Such a bias could have important consequences for decision making by police officers and other authorities interacting with racial minorities. The bias requires no intentional racial animus, occurring even for those who are actively trying to avoid it. This research thus raises difficult questions about intent and responsibility for racially biased errors.

Questions to Consider:

1. Would it be reasonable to administer a test like the one addressed in the article (or the Implicit Association Test) to potential police recruits and eliminate applicants with documented implicit biases? Why, or why not? Would results suggesting the presence of bias automatically identify an individual as a bad police officer or, more generally, a bad person? Explain.