NCJ Number
133138
Journal
Canadian Police College Journal Volume: 15 Issue: 3 Dated: (1991) Pages: 203-226
Date Published
1991
Length
24 pages
Annotation
Police executives need to recognize the human resource strategies available to them in implementing a community-based policing approach.
Abstract
Education is the key that will eliminate resistance to change on the part of police officers at all levels. Changes in policing philosophy must be incorporated into the curriculum for recruits; field officers also need to be educated in the context of community- based policing. Furthermore, front line supervisors must be retrained to relinquish their traditional views and become facilitators and problem-solvers. Community-based policing requires that promotion of officers be based on the quality of their performance in terms of problem-oriented policing efforts. Effective communication is the nerve system of an organization; police agencies need to explore ways to open their lines of communication. This approach also demands that police agencies decentralize in order to give community police officers greater autonomy in solving community problems. Finally, each police organization must set standards that address issues of quality, service, innovation, flexibility, and communication and that weigh all decisions in the interest of public welfare.