Police leadership as it applies to employee satisfaction is often not well-developed because of the police culture of the bureaucratic rank and file structure and the civil nature of the position itself (Densten, 1999). The relationship between job performance and job satisfaction appears to be reciprocal, thus effective leadership can increase both job satisfaction and job performance (Engel, 2003)
According to the COPS in order to meet the goals as developed by Peel and Mark the police departments must develop community partnerships, engage in organizational transformation, and engage in problem solving strategies regarding both maintaining partnerships with the community and during organizational transformations (DOJ, nd). Psychologists are experts in human behavior and can assist police departments in all three of these areas (Gottfredson & Polokowski, 2011)
First, in terms of group decision-making there is a large psychological literature that has dissected decisions made by groups and what types of variables/conditions can facilitate good decision-making and what kinds of variables/conditions hinder solid decision-making. For example, the phenomena of Groupthink, where highly cohesive groups with strong leaders, strong feelings of invulnerability, the drive towards morality, stereotyped views of others, and very little self -- censorship can lead to decisions that did not consider alternative courses of action, do not realistically look at all of the issues involved, and a failure to consider how the decisions affect everyone involved (Janis, 1997)
The history of community policing goes as far back as the beginnings of governmental policing and the beginnings of law enforcement agencies. Sir Robert Peel is generally acknowledged as the originator of modern law enforcement agencies as he spearheaded the formation of the London Metropolitan Police District in the early 1800s (Lentz & Chaires, 2007)
The psychological literature also discusses routes to persuasion and effective elements to influencing groups and individuals. For example, classic research by Richard Petty and John Cacioppo identified two routes to persuading people: a central route and a peripheral (Petty and Cacioppo, 1986)
, Brennan & Valcic, 2012). Psychologists can also help the police become more culturally aware as this is an ethical principle that all psychologists are required to subscribe to (Ratts, D'Andrea, & Arredondo, 2004)
The urban crises observed in the 1960s highlighted the need for more effective community policy and a return to these ideals and the notion of a partnership between communities and law enforcement (Wilson & Kelling, 1982). Acts like The Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 authorized funds to promote community policing and add a more visible police presence (Skolnick, 2011)
Community policing is a strategy that requires both new attitudes and commitments from citizens and new attitudes and commitments from police officers. It builds on the basic practices of policing by emphasizing cooperation between the police department and the citizenry, by emphasizing the prevention of crimes as opposed to just catching perpetrators, and by developing long-term solutions to existing and potential problems in the community (U.S. Department of Justice [DOJ], nd)
First with respect to developing better community relationships, one issue is to develop a better impression of police officers with the community. In terms of positive impression management with the public the psychologist can help the police department develop and maintain the image of the police as public servants as opposed to mere authority figures as the research indicates that this type of presentation is viewed as more favorably by both the public and police in an organization (Vito, Suresh, & Richards, 2011)
These principles are reflected in the later principles of Sir Robert Mark (Lentz & Chaires, 2007); however, in the United States there was a move away from this type of cooperation in the 1950s and 1960s. The urban crises observed in the 1960s highlighted the need for more effective community policy and a return to these ideals and the notion of a partnership between communities and law enforcement (Wilson & Kelling, 1982)
The Lincoln Police Department of Lincoln, Nebraska, for example, calls community policing "the most misunderstood and frequently abused theme in police management." Community policing has been called a fad, a trend, and a buzzword (Friedmann, 1996)
g. A Police Office in a large metropolitan area like New York will have different duties and dangers than a County Sheriff in a rural Oklahoma area) (Barlow 2000)
similar incidents, etc.) are examined in detail so that resources and preventative measures can be used more effectively (Goldstein, 2001)
The implications would be far more preventative (education, safety, etc.) and measured through a reduction in crime statistics, public perception of safety in neighborhoods and public events, and a greater reduction in overall fear within the community (Greene, 2000)
From the community's perspective, it means that the policy and organizations within the community form partnerships to increase the effectiveness of law enforcement. The gist is to provide opportunities for more dialog and communication so the community will trust the police, the police will trust the community, and there will be more opportunities to liaison between individuals and police (Miller, 2007)
The Rodney King issues, the Seattle Police Department's overuse of force, and other events place rights-based policing and community involvement at the center of both political and public attention. In fact, rights-based policing has been endorsed by Amnesty International, the Red Cross, and several agencies in the United Nations as a way to allow the community to have some degree of oversight on the over-extension of police authority -- a way to put human rights at the forefront of police philosophy (Williamson 2008)
.enlist the support of the local Chamber of Commerce or other business organizations in persuading business owners to improve security; and brief (with care) the local media on the problem and the proposed solution" (Newman 2008)
COPS promote community policing through a variety of initiatives, including its Regional Community Policing Institute program (RCPI). With Community Policing programs benefits for example include such items as Community Officers identifying more illicit activities than even some undercover officers, but their sustained presence also allows them to take less threatening offenses seriously, addressing problems before they escalate to greater severities (Sherman, 1990)
The technological development shifted the police from crime prevention to after crime control of further damage upon call. This trend escalated with the introduction of computer and computerized systems of profiling of crimes, type of crimes, frequency, trends, calculated rapidity, efficiency of dispatch, and so on the rapid response became an end in itself rather than a means to end crime (Conrad Adenauer, 2005)
The police, there before were randomly changed from one route to another with the aim of reducing corruption and reducing police involvement in drug ring running and cover-ups and making the police force more community focused. This habit denied the community the chance to trust the police enough to share secrets of crime (Jeffery Peterson, 2012), hence the only solution was community policing where the police drew closer to the community and after a long time winning the confidence of the residents