NCJ Number
102425
Date Published
1986
Length
268 pages
Annotation
A participant observation study of the Fort Wayne Police Department (Indiana) provides the basis for an analysis of the realities of street-level policing, with attention to the socialization of police officers, their attitudes and decisionmaking processes, the use of force, and coping mechanisms.
Abstract
An overview of the research setting covers the demographics of Fort Wayne, the organization and services offered by the police department, and its selection procedures, unions, and internal politics. The book examines how rookies learn the police role and the manner in which officers categorize citizens in an effort to ease their enforcement decisions. Tests that street officers use when deciding whether to make a formal arrest are described, as are street tactics learned from other officers and experience. The use of deadly and nondeadly force is reviewed from the police officer's perspective. The author presents five officer typologies to demonstrate the various coping mechanisms employed to protect officers' psyches from the harsh realities they face daily. A summary of the study's findings notes that most officers in Fort Wayne cared about their work and were committed to the ideal of protecting the innocent. It also identifies problems and recommends policing reforms. Footnotes, an account of the researcher's trials and tribulations, and index.