Utilising police knowledge and skills: Experiences from police practitioners studying a police specific degree

This article presents preliminary findings from a longitudinal study contributing to the current debate about police education and professionalising the police in England and Wales. The findings in this article are taken from a survey administered in 2016 to third-year students enrolled in a policing degree. Surveys were distributed to police officer students in the last year of their degree programme asking for their perceptions of the degree, their organisation's support for their learning and how they felt that learning was utilised in their workplace. Supplementary to the survey, interviews were conducted with the students after their graduation in 2018. The research findings suggest that students perceived the benefits of obtaining a degree-level qualification as fundamentally important to their professional development and personal decision-making at work. Early support initially received for study leave purposes, rarely extended beyond this practical provision. The extent to which police organisations valued the learning from the degree was perceived to be lacking. Senior-ranked students were more likely to be able to use and promote their newly acquired skills and knowledge in the workplace compared with lower-ranked students. Such findings may inform scholars’ and practitioners’ continued evaluation of police education reforms in England and Wales.

A national study of the availability of law enforcement agency wellness programming for officers: A latent class analysis

The purpose of this study is to understand the availability of employee wellness programs within law enforcement agencies (LEAs) across the United States, including physical fitness, resilience/wellness, coping skills, nutrition, mental health treatment, and substance use treatment. The research team investigated whether patterns of LEA wellness programming are identifiable and, if so, what characteristics describe these patterns. We assess using latent class analysis whether there are distinct profiles of agencies with similar patterns offering different types of wellness programs and explore what characteristics distinguish agencies with certain profiles of wellness programming. Data were from a nationally representative sample of 1135 LEAs: 80.1% municipal, 18.6% county and 1.3% other agencies (state-level and Bureau of Indian Affairs LEAs). We found that many agencies (62%) offer no wellness programming. We also found that 23% have comprehensive wellness programming, and that another group of agencies specialize in specific wellness programming. About 14% of the agencies have a high probability of providing resilience coping skill education, mental health and/or substance use treatment services programming. About 1% of the agencies in the United States limit their programming to fitness and nutrition, indicating that fitness and nutrition programs are more likely to be offered in concert with other types of wellness programs. The analyses revealed that agencies offering broad program support are more likely to be large, municipal LEAs located in either the West, Midwest or Northeast (compared with the southern United States), and not experiencing a recent budget cut that impacted wellness programming.

Quality of work life, emotional and physical well-being of police personnel in India

The job profile of police officers places exceptional demands on them leading to risks to life, personal discomfort and stress. This article aims to examine how the physical and emotional well-being of police personnel is affected by their perceived quality of work life (QWL). The study looked at the questionnaire responses of 234 police personnel. Emotional well-being is measured as the absence of depression, emotional hyperactivity, difficulty relaxing, irritability and anxiety, whereas physical well-being is measured as the presence of diabetes, thyroid problems, insomnia and obesity. The study assessed police perceptions of QWL as provided by the government. The study findings are segregated for QWL on the basis of dominant ill-being and dominant well-being. Factors such as career and development, working environment, safety, work load, compensation and fear of punishment should be carefully analysed and improved. Some 71.8% of the respondents suffered from two or more emotional ailments; 70% suffered from two or more physical ailments. Findings suggest that QWL dimensions that fall within dominant ill-being need to be addressed immediately by policy makers and management to improve police well-being.

Gender equity approach to policing in Kenya: Lessons, challenges and prospects

Despite ample evidence of women's value, ensuring gender equity–equality is a major challenge for police departments worldwide. Using survey data gathered from a sample of 455 male and female police officers in the Kenya Police Service, this study examines the non-western plights of women in policing and describes a theory change to formulate gender-equity strategies for improved recruitment and retention of women in police service. Findings indicate that women officers can undertake most tasks better than or to the same degree as men, except for a small proportion of line duties, mirroring the literature on women in policing internationally. However, family commitments, an emphasis on physical strength for promotion, performance based on male standards, and male supervisors’ attitudes present severe challenges for women in the police service, reflecting the organizational climate and prevailing cultural norms. Implications for theory, policy and research are discussed.

The problem of entanglement: Biases and fallacies in police conflict management

Cognitive biases have been identified as drivers of the excessive use of force, which has determined current affairs across the globe. In this article, we argue that the police are facing serious challenges in combating these biases. These challenges stem from the nature of cognitive biases, their sources and the fallacies that mislead police professionals in the way they think about them. Based on a framework of expert decision-making fallacies and biases, we argue that these fallacies limit the impact of efforts to mitigate cognitive biases in police conflict management. In order to achieve a systemic understanding of cognitive biases and their detrimental effects, the article concludes that implementing reflexive structures within the police is a crucial prerequisite to effectively reflect on external influences and to limit bias and fallacies from further unfolding in a self-referential loop.

How the interplay between organisational ‘culture’ and ‘climate’ shapes police officers’ perceptions of community policing

This article draws on interview data and the concepts of organisational ‘culture’ and ‘climate’ to critically assess police officers’ perceptions of community policing in one English constabulary. In so doing, it considers the cultural, organisational and wider contextual determinants of officers’ alignment to this style of police work. With an emphasis on developing community partnerships and engaging in problem-solving, rather than enforcement of the criminal law, community policing has been seen a primary way of rendering officers more ‘responsive’ to the needs of citizens, improving police–community relations and driving down crime rates. An important reform movement in police organisations around the world, the success of community policing nonetheless depends on officers’ willingness and ability to deliver it. Accordingly, the generation of evidence about the ‘drivers’ of officers’ attitudes to inform strategies to promote the delivery of the approach is essential. Findings suggest that officers value community policing as an organisational strategy but that the approach maintains a low status and is undervalued compared with other specialisms within the organisation. This is born of an organisational culture that foregrounds law enforcement as the primary function of police work and an organisational climate that reinforces it. This has implications for community officers in terms of their perceptions of and attitudes towards the approach, self-esteem and sense of value and worth, perceptions of organisational justice, discretionary effort and role commitment. Recommendations for police managers are set out.

German police recruits’ perception of skill transfer from training to the field

In order optimally to prepare police officers for the demands in the field, police training has to be designed representatively. However, for the German context, there is a scarcity of research investigating to what extent training meets the demands of the field. To fill this gap, the current study examined if police training in Germany meets the field demands of police officers based on the perspective of police recruits. Thirteen recruits from a German police force were interviewed in a semi-structured way to identify possible matches and discrepancies between training and the field. The qualitative were was analysed using content analysis. The results revealed that recruits valued police training very positively because they were able to apply learned skills and tactics in the field. However, results also indicated that: (a) key informational variables present in the field were missing in training, namely chaotic, highly dynamic situations; and (b) police officers need to be adaptable and flexible in the field to cope with the demands. Finally, the results suggested that police training focuses narrowly on dealing with extreme threats, which differs from the experiences recruits had in the field and may have drawbacks because continuously perceiving social situations as threatening and dangerous is a risk factor for aggressive behaviour. Taken together, the current study provides further insights into the wants and needs of recruits in police training.

Technological innovation in policing and crime prevention: Practitioner perspectives from London

Digital technology now plays a critical role in policing and security management, with policing apps, drones and body-worn cameras potentially being game-changers. Adoption of such technologies is, however, not straightforward and depends upon the buy-in of senior management teams and users. This study examines what obstacles practitioners face in the procurement, deployment and use of crime prevention and detection technologies. The issue is explored through a number of expert interviews conducted with practitioners in London between August 2019 and March 2020. This work expands previous, more theoretical, literature on the topic by adding a practical perspective and advances the understanding of issues faced in innovation processes and their management. We identified a variety of issues and obstacles to technological innovation for policing. These include the deployment of new systems at the cost of old ones, lack of financial and political support, issues in public–private partnerships, and public acceptability. Although individual practitioners may have the expertise and willingness to unleash the full potential of surveillance and crime-reduction technologies, they are usually restrained by institutional rules or, in some cases, inefficiencies. In terms of the latter, this study especially highlights the negative impact of a lack of technical interoperability of different systems, missing inter- and intra-agency communication, and unclear guidelines and procedures.

Impact of psychological contract breach on police corruption in Nigeria: The moderating role of emotion regulation strategies

Using insight from social exchange and conservation of resources theories, the present study address the void in the literature on the relationship between psychological contract breach (PCB) and police corruption, and investigates the moderating role of emotion regulation strategies (cognitive reappraisal and expressive suppression) in the relationship. Data were collected from 391 (198 male and 193 female) police personnel in various police divisions in Akure, Ondo State, Nigeria. The results of moderated hierarchical regression analysis showed that PCB ( β = .17, p < .05) and expressive suppression ( β = .22, p < .01) were positively related to police corruption. However, cognitive reappraisal ( β = −.26, p < .05) was negatively associated with police corruption. Finally, whereas cognitive reappraisal ( β = −.10, p < .05) buffers the positive relationship between PCB and police corruption, expressive suppression exacerbates this relationship ( β = .19 , p < .01). These findings suggest the need for cognitive reappraisal training for police personnel.

Policing the coronavirus pandemic: Nigeria police senior officers’ views on preparedness, response, legitimacy and post-COVID policing

In the wake of pandemic policing occasioned by COVID-19, Nigeria police have been facing challenges of a lack of legitimacy, together with what is termed the militarization of police operations. This has impacted considerably on police–community relations. Meanwhile, early reports on the police response to the pandemic indicated high levels of lockdown violation, despite adoption of a militarized option in the enforcement of restriction orders. In reviewing one of the first police interventions on a public health crisis in Nigeria, a qualitative study was conducted among top-ranking police officers who supervised the enforcement of lockdown and other COVID-19 measures. Sixteen interviews were conducted and a thematic analysis of the narratives was carried out. Police unpreparedness for public health interventions, and public resistance to the use of repressive, force-led styles of policing were identified as major impediments to positive pandemic policing. Therefore, police officers are advised to ensure the application of procedurally just practices in their interactions with the public.