To Adopt or Not to Adopt: Contextualizing Police Body-Worn Cameras Through Structural Contingency and Institutional Theoretical Perspectives
There has been an increase in the adoption of body-worn cameras (BWCs) by law enforcement agencies in the United States and abroad. While several studies have showed promising results in officer satisfaction, community satisfaction, and other outcomes, the rationale for the adoption and diffusion of this technology has received little attention.This article suggests that agency adoption of BWCs can be understood through two competing theoretical frameworks: structural contingency theory and institutional theory. Intended as a research note, the paper sets up a number of testable propositions and hypotheses pertaining to BWCs as contextualized through these theories and measurable through the recent Law Enforcement Management Administrative Statistics-Body-Worn Camera Supplement.