NCJ Number
218162
Journal
Women & Criminal Justice Volume: 16 Issue: 3 Dated: 2005 Pages: 1-25
Date Published
2005
Length
25 pages
Annotation
Drawing on Schwartz and DeKeseredy’s (1997) male peer support model, this paper reviews the literature related to the relationship between a hypermasculine police culture and the negative experiences of female police officers.
Abstract
Two main reasons were offered for why Schwartz and DeKeseredy’s (1997) male peer support model helps to theoretically explain the police culture and its role in creating negative experiences for female police officers. First, the theory helps explain how all-male groups result in male-only socialization and the effects this all-male socialization has on male peer support. Second, the theory furthers the understanding of police culture and helps explain how the specific roles of male peer support may perpetuate the occurrence of anti-woman behaviors and resistance to the presence of women within policing cultures. The findings should motivate police managers to develop an educational approach designed to break down the barriers of solidarity, secrecy, and mistrust within police cultures. This educational approach should also include instruction related to diversity and gender-specific issues. The findings should also inform future theory-building research related to the interaction between institutional-level characteristics and group dynamics of male-dominated institutions, such as athletic teams, fraternities, and policing cultures. The current analysis focused on exploring the gendered nature of organizations and the ways in which they influence the creation of hierarchies within the police culture and gendered power relations within policing organizations. The authors reviewed the research literature related to police subculture and resistance to women in policing. Future research should focus on developing empirical tests of relevant variables, such as misogyny, hypermasculinity, and social group membership, and how their combined impact affects the treatment of female officers in the workplace. Figures, notes, references