scholarly journals Expanding Mechanisms of Governance: Uncertainty and Risk in Police Decision-Making Strategies in the Pursuit of Specialized Peace Bonds

2021 ◽  
pp. 001112872110141
Author(s):  
Dale Ballucci ◽  
Garrett Lecoq
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Police Officers ◽  
Risk Assessments ◽  
Central Object ◽  
Police Decision Making ◽  
Discretionary Behaviors ◽  
Assessment Guidelines ◽  
Peace Bonds

This study examines police officers’ decision-making practices through analyzing how they determine which offenders are candidates for an 810, or peace bond. This legal tool allows police officers to petition the courts for continued surveillance and conditions for offenders postrelease. Little, however, is offered in terms of assessment guidelines on how to make such determinations. As a result, police officers discretionary behaviors and additional legal factors play a key role in these determinations. Our findings advance the idea that “uncertainty” is the central object to be managed, and further complicate how risk is constructed and mobilized by suggesting that risk assessments result in over-precautionary practices.

scholarly journals Policing “uncontrollable banshees”: factors influencing arrest decision making

2015 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
pp. 183-192 ◽  
Author(s):  
Suzanne Young
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Young Women ◽  
Police Officers ◽  
Police Training ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Police Decision Making ◽  
Arrest Decision ◽  
Determining Factor

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the factors that influence police officers’ decision making when dealing with young women considered violent. Design/methodology/approach – Semi-structured interviews were carried out with frontline police officers in Scotland on their experiences of responding to incidents where young women displayed violence. Findings – The police officers clearly distinguished encounters with women using violence from those with young men, portraying young women as irrational, unpredictable and uncontrollable. The research found that while gender alone was not a determining factor for arrest, police officers did stereotype young women according to gender norms and these norms could have a bearing on decision making. The findings show that police officers prefer to respond to situations with male perpetrators due to their own difficulties effectively communicating with young women, who are often under the influence of alcohol. Research limitations/implications – The research indicates that police officers, regardless of their gender, have difficulties handling violent incidents that involve young women. This provides scope for further analysis of police training to ascertain whether sufficient guidance is provided to fully equip police officers when faced with aggressive young women. This study focused on police officers’ own views and experiences but future research could consider a more ethnographic approach to observe police decision making in practice to determine whether the stereotypes portrayed were a true reflection of their experiences. Originality/value – This is one of only a very few studies that has explored the relation between gender and arrest decision making. It enhances the understanding of how young women come to be arrested and indicates how police officers are currently ill equipped to effectively respond to young women considered violent.

Risk Assessment/Risk Management Is a Three-Step Process: In Defense of EPA's Risk Assessment Guidelines

1988 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 543-549 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bernard D. Goldstein
Keyword(s):  
Risk Assessment ◽  
Decision Making ◽  
Risk Management ◽  
Science Policy ◽  
Priority Setting ◽  
Risk Assessments ◽  
Appropriate Use ◽  
Step Process ◽  
The Past ◽  
Assessment Guidelines

The purpose of this article is to focus on the appropriate use and development of risk assessment and to point out that many of the perceived shortcomings, in fact, represent limitations imposed by the framework in which it is being used and failure to understand the situations for which risk assessment is suited. Risk assessment/risk management is really a three-step not a two-step process. The first step, preceding risk assessment, is science policy, in which the guidelines for the generic performance of risk assessments are established. The benefits of risk assessment to appropriate environmental regulation not only are direct, in terms of improved decision making and priority setting, but also they have the major indirect value of focusing research efforts on crucial uncertainties in a manner that has not been possible in the past.

Offender-Centric Policing in Cases of Rape

2021 ◽  
pp. 002201832110274
Author(s):  
Philip NS Rumney ◽  
Duncan McPhee
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Domestic Violence ◽  
Police Officers ◽  
Sexual Offending ◽  
Confirmation Bias ◽  
Missed Opportunities ◽  
Predatory Behaviour ◽  
Investigative Tool ◽  
Care And Support ◽  
History Of

The article explores the idea of ‘offender-centric’ policing in cases of rape, with its focus on suspect and offender admissions and behaviours. It features discussion of 11 cases, illustrating offender-centric pathways to charge or conviction, the challenges facing complainants, suspects and police officers, along with missed opportunities to focus on a suspect’s behaviour. The importance of victim care and support is discussed, and it is argued that victim care should accompany an offender-centric approach to rape investigation. It is also argued that there are potential dangers with offender-centric tactics, specifically, that without due care it may become a self-confirming investigative tool influenced by confirmation bias which may lead to flawed decision-making. The article concludes by arguing that offender-centric policing has benefits in those cases with suspects who engage in predatory behaviour, have a history of previously undisclosed sexual offending and domestic violence and other problematic behaviours. It also has value in focusing the attention of investigators on what steps were taken by a suspect to ascertain the complainant’s consent. While the offender-centric approach cannot address all investigative challenges in rape cases, it is a useful addition to existing strategies.

Focal Concerns and Police Decision Making in Sexual Assault Cases: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

2021 ◽  
pp. 152483802199128
Author(s):  
David S. Lapsey ◽  
Bradley A. Campbell ◽  
Bryant T. Plumlee
Keyword(s):  
Systematic Review ◽  
Decision Making ◽  
Sexual Assault ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
The United States ◽  
Empirical Literature ◽  
Campbell Collaboration ◽  
Focal Concerns ◽  
Police Decision Making ◽  
The Impact

Sexual assault and case attrition at the arrest stage are serious problems in the United States. Focal concerns have increasingly been used to explain police decision making in sexual assault cases. Because of the popularity of the focal concerns perspective and potential to inform evidence-based training, a systematic review and meta-analysis are needed to condense the literature. In this study, we assess the overall strength of the relationship between focal concerns variables and police decisions to arrest in cases of sexual assault. Our assessment of the effects of focal concerns variables on arrest decision making in sexual assault cases followed the systematic review protocols provided by the Campbell Collaboration of Systematic Reviews. Specifically, we used the Campbell Collaboration recommendations to search empirical literature and used meta-analysis to evaluate the size, direction, and strength of the impact of focal concerns variables on arrest decisions. Our search strategy detected 14 eligible studies and 79 effect sizes. The meta-analysis found several robust and statistically significant correlates of arrest. In fact, each focal concerns concept produced at least one robust arrest correlate. Overall, focal concerns offers a strong approach for explaining police decisions in sexual assault cases. Although practical concerns and resource constraints produced the strongest arrest correlates, results show the importance of additional case characteristics in officers’ decision to arrest.

scholarly journals The Police Use of Background Information Related to Alleged Victims in Mock Evaluations of Child Sexual Abuse

2019 ◽  
Vol 35 (4) ◽  
pp. 414-421 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alessandro Tadei ◽  
Pekka Santtila ◽  
Jan Antfolk
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Child Sexual Abuse ◽  
Police Officers ◽  
Background Information ◽  
Support Tools ◽  
Low Probability ◽  
Individual Variables ◽  
Subject Performance ◽  
Decision Making Support

Abstract When statistically related to child sexual abuse (CSA), background information can assist decision-making in investigations of CSA allegations. Here, we studied the use of such background information among Finnish police officers. We analyzed their ability to identify and interpret CSA-related and CSA-unrelated background information both when placed in mock scenarios and when presented as separate, individual variables. We also measured the ability to correctly estimate the probability of CSA based on such background information. In the context of mock scenarios, officers were better in discarding CSA-unrelated variables than in identifying CSA-related ones. Within-subject performance across different scenarios was, however, not consistent. When information was presented as separate variables, officers tended to incorrectly consider many CSA-unrelated variables as CSA-related. Officers performed better in recognizing whether actual CSA-related variables increase or decrease the probability of CSA. Finally, officers were inaccurate in identifying variables that are CSA-related only for boys or only for girls. When asked to estimate the CSA probability of mock scenarios, participants were accurate only in assessing low-probability cases, and this was not associated with the ability to identify CSA-related and CSA-unrelated variables. We conclude that police officers would benefit from more training in using background information and from using available decision-making support tools in the context of investigating CSA allegations.

Policing in a Largely Minority Jurisdiction: The Influence of Appearance Characteristics Associated with Contemporary Hip-Hop Culture on Police Decision-Making

2017 ◽  
Vol 34 (7) ◽  
pp. 1310-1338 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dean A. Dabney ◽  
Brent Teasdale ◽  
Glen A. Ishoy ◽  
Taylor Gann ◽  
Bonnie Berry
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Hip Hop ◽  
Hip Hop Culture ◽  
Police Decision Making

scholarly journals The Police Use of Background Information Related to Alleged Victims in Mock Evaluations of Child Sexual Abuse

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alessandro Tadei ◽  
Pekka Santtila ◽  
Jan Antfolk
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Child Sexual Abuse ◽  
Police Officers ◽  
Base Rate ◽  
Background Information ◽  
Support Tools ◽  
Low Probability ◽  
Subject Performance ◽  
Decision Making Support

When statistically related to child sexual abuse (CSA), background information can assist decision-making in investigations of CSA allegations. Here, we studied the use of such background information among Finnish police officers. We analyzed their ability to identify and interpret CSA-related and -unrelated background information both when placed in mock scenarios and when presented as separate variables. We also measured the ability to correctly estimate the base-rate of CSA allegations being true based on such background information. In the context of mock scenarios, officers were better in discarding CSA-unrelated variables than in identifying CSA-related ones. Within-subject performance across different scenarios was, however, not consistent. When information was presented as separate variables, officers tended to incorrectly consider many CSA-unrelated variables as CSA-related. Officers performed well in recognizing whether CSA-related variables increase or decrease CSA risk. Finally, officers were inaccurate in identifying variables that are CSA-related only for boys or only for girls. When asked to estimate the CSA probability of mock scenarios, participants were accurate only in assessing low-probability cases, and this was not associated with the ability to identify CSA-related and -unrelated variables. We conclude that police officers would benefit from more training in using background information and from using available decision-making support tools in the context of investigating CSA allegations.

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