Police: Social Control, the State and Democracy (From Policing, Security and Democracy: Theory and Practice, P 73-98, 2001, Menachem Amir, Stanley Einstein, eds., -- See NCJ-192667)

• NCJ Number: 192672
• Author(s): Nigel Fielding
• Date Published: 2001
• Length: 26 pages
• Sale Source: Office of International Criminal Justice
• Publication Format: Book (Softbound)
• Publication Type: Issue Overview
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This article considers three broad models for organizing the police and for the delivery of policing services in contemporary society.

Abstract

The three models are law enforcement, service, and community/geographic. The article examines each model by reference to its philosophy, organizational structure, output, management policy, and its operational strategy and tactics. The article considers the merits and drawbacks of each model and assesses the fit between the models and different forms of political organization. The article observes that there is no perfect model, no policing system which is a perfect instance of a single model. The enforcement model offers a forceful reactive machine but proceeds by its own dictates once activated by the public. It is primarily a crisis response model. The service model is even more reactive than the enforcement model. Public involvement extends to rethinking the balance between crime control and the provision of social services. The community model is a mixed model. It gives the political process a higher profile, with the potential to impose frequent changes of priority. Resources for crime control would be squeezed in favor of community services. The article suggests the need for conceptual and theoretical synthesis, a systematic analysis of the benefits and advantages of the police as an institution. Figures, references, additional resources, glossary