NCJ Number
55527
Editor(s)
P K MANNING,
J VANMAANEN
Date Published
1978
Length
368 pages
Annotation
ARGUING THAT THE ESSENCE OF POLICE WORK IS LOCATED AT STREET LEVEL, THIS COLLECTION OF ARTICLES PROVIDES A SOCIOLOGICAL VIEW OF THE CONTEXT, STRATEGIES, AND PRACTICE OF POLICING AND OF POLICE OFFICER SOCIALIZATION.
Abstract
BEGINNING WITH A CONSIDERATION OF THE HISTORICAL PROCESSES AND CHANGING CULTURAL ARRANGEMENTS THAT HAVE PROVIDED THE POLICE WITH THEIR RATHER LOOSE MISSION AND MANDATE WITHIN SOCIETY, SUBSEQUENT SELECTIONS EXAMINE THE PRESENT-DAY CONTEXT WITHIN WHICH POLICING IS ACCOMPLISHED AND THE VARIOUS TACTICS, INCLUDING ADMINISTRATIVE, OPERATIONAL, AND INDIVIDUAL, USED WHEN PEFORMING VARIOUS POLICE TASKS. THESE TACTICS ARE INVESTIGATED WITHIN THE FRAMEWORK OF THE EVERYDAY PRACTICE OF POLICING, WITH PARTICULAR ATTENTION TO THE STREET-LEVEL ENCOUNTERS BETWEEN THE POLICE AND THE PUBLIC. USING ONE OF THREE SUBDIVISIONAL HEADQUARTERS OF THE LONDON, ENGLAND, POLICE, THE COMMONSENSE OR ASSUMED GROUNDS OF ORGANIZATIONAL INTEGRATION ARE EXPLORED, ESPECIALLY IN TERMS OF COLLEAGUE RELATIONS. THE SCOPE AND SUSCEPTIBILITY OF NARCOTICS SQUAD OFFICERS TO CORRUPTION AND ABUSE OF AUTHORITY ARE OUTLINED, ALONG WITH SELECTED CRIME PREVENTION AND CONTROL EXPERIMENTS CONDUCTED IN NEW YORK CITY, KANSAS CITY, AND ELSEWHERE TO DETERMINE WHETHER INCREASES IN THE NUMBER OF PATROL OFFICERS POSITIVELY AFFECTS CRIME. THE INTERACTIONAL ORIGINS AND CONSEQUENCES OF DEROGATORY LABELING USED BY POLICE OFFICERS ARE EXAMINED, AS ARE THE DYNAMICS OF POLICE LYING AS A TOOL OF SOCIAL AND ORGANIZATIONAL CONTROL. FINALLY, VARIOUS METHODOLOGICAL ISSUES ENDEMIC TO THE ETHNOGRAPHIC STUDY OF THE POLICE ARE DISCUSSED, WITH PARTICULAR ATTENTION TO THE PROBLEMS AND RESPONSIBILITIES INHERENT IN A PARTICIPANT OBSERVER RESEARCH RELATIONSHIP. TABULAR DATA AND REFERENCES ARE INCLUDED. SEE ALSO NCJ 55528-55533.