Police Culture
Police Culture in the United States
Internal and External Mechanisms Police Culture in the United StatesAlthough it is senior police management that makes decisions about police strategy, departmental policy, and the allocation of police resources, ordinary officers in fact make the great majority of day-to-day policing decisions. These police officers decide whom to stop, whom to question, and whom to arrest, as well as how best to deal with public concerns and complaints. See really it is ran by the ordinary officer. We used to believe that the “Chief of police” made all the decisions. The Iron Law of Oligarchy suggests that the formal organization of bureaucracies inevitably leads to oligarchy, in which even organizations that originally proposed to be based upon democratically oriented philosophies eventually come to be dominated by a small, self-serving group of people who have achieved positions of power. The depersonalizing effect of police bureaucracies has often been cited as a major contributing factor to the development and maintenance of a distinct police subculture. A position of power will take over and we will have some sort of new world order. This sounded pretty external to us. The culture of women and minorities has evolved in its impact in policing since the 1970’s. Over the past few decades, the image of women and minorities in law enforcement has become more equally associated with that of those of white men. Prior to this, during the times of high discrimination, women were seen as weaker individuals and not strong enough to hold a position in police work. Ethnic minorities were regarded as lesser people and not represented in legal authority. Women and Minorities in Police It wasn’t until 1910 when the first woman, Alice Wells, was sworn into the police force as an officer. Although this was a breakthrough for women into more equal roles in law enforcement where they were limited to working at woman
Internal and External Mechanisms Police Culture in the United StatesAlthough it is senior police management that makes decisions about police strategy, departmental policy, and the allocation of police resources, ordinary officers in fact make the great majority of day-to-day policing decisions. These police officers decide whom to stop, whom to question, and whom to arrest, as well as how best to deal with public concerns and complaints. See really it is ran by the ordinary officer. We used to believe that the “Chief of police” made all the decisions. The Iron Law of Oligarchy suggests that the formal organization of bureaucracies inevitably leads to oligarchy, in which even organizations that originally proposed to be based upon democratically oriented philosophies eventually come to be dominated by a small, self-serving group of people who have achieved positions of power. The depersonalizing effect of police bureaucracies has often been cited as a major contributing factor to the development and maintenance of a distinct police subculture. A position of power will take over and we will have some sort of new world order. This sounded pretty external to us. The culture of women and minorities has evolved in its impact in policing since the 1970’s. Over the past few decades, the image of women and minorities in law enforcement has become more equally associated with that of those of white men. Prior to this, during the times of high discrimination, women were seen as weaker individuals and not strong enough to hold a position in police work. Ethnic minorities were regarded as lesser people and not represented in legal authority. Women and Minorities in Police It wasn’t until 1910 when the first woman, Alice Wells, was sworn into the police force as an officer. Although this was a breakthrough for women into more equal roles in law enforcement where they were limited to working at woman
References: Walker S. (2011). Police in America. (Seventh Edition). Chapter 5: Police Officers 1: Entering Police Work. Retrieved October 13, 2012 from University of Phoenix eBook Collection. Walker S. (2011). Police in America. (Seventh Edition). Chapter 6: Police Officers 2: On the Job. Retrieved October 13, 2012 from University of Phoenix eBook Collection.