Police Officers Use of Tasers

Police Officers use of Taser Guns Police Officers are faced with many obstacles throughout his or her career. A lot of research has been done regarding the work police officers do. Often time’s officers are faced with making decisions very quickly, without being able to think about his or her options. Most police officers carry a weapon, handcuffs, a baton, a flashlight, a knife, and a taser gun. A taser gun is a weapon that sends electrical currents through the body and causes the body to lose control of its muscles. Taser guns can be deadly if not used properly. Taser guns are fairly new to policing and more research should be done regarding the use of them in policing. When conducting research regarding police departments’ use of taser guns, one must remember to include all aspects surrounding taser guns. Some very important questions must be asked before conducting any research. How safe are taser guns? How much would it cost a department to issue taser guns to all of its officers? How easy is it to operate a taser gun? How much training would officers receive regarding how to use a taser gun? These are very important questions that need to be answered in order to come to any solid conclusion. Before conducting any research, one must have a theory. An example could be “Taser guns are necessary in police departments.” Without doing the proper research it is unknown whether this theory is accurate or not. Also, without having the above questions answered, one will never know for sure if taser guns would be an effective tool for any police force. When trying to get answers to the above questions it is important to interview past and present police officers, talk to police departments about taser gun training and ask if taser guns fit into budgets, and research the safety and ease of taser guns. Some of this information will be found in qualitative research and some will be found in quantitative research. Both forms of research are equally

References: Key, J. P. (1997). Qualitative Research. Retrieved from http://www.okstate.edu/ag/agedcm4h/academic/aged5980a/5980/newpage21.htm. Quantitative Research. (2009). Retrieved from http://labsome.rmit.edu.au/liki/index.php/Quantitative_research Plagiarism: What It is and How to Recognize and Avoid It. (2011). Retrieved from http://www.indiana.edu/~wts/pamphlets/plagiarism.shtml