NCJ Number
216383
Journal
Policing: An International Journal of Police Strategies & Management Volume: 29 Issue: 3 Dated: 2006 Pages: 482-497
Date Published
2006
Length
16 pages
Annotation
This study examined how South Korean police officers and private security officers viewed their working relationships, police officers' attitudes toward the professionalism of security officers, suggestsions for ways to improve the working relationship, and their perceptions of the future of public and private police relationships.
Abstract
Findings indicate that both security officers and police officers are optimistic and positive about the nature of their existing interactions, strategies for improving cooperation, and strategies for improving the image and professionalism of security officers; however, security officers were somewhat more optimistic than police officers about achieving improvements in working relationships between the two professions. Both groups believe that the other group could do more to encourage a positive working relationship. Further research is needed to assess the extent to which the administrators of both public and private police organizations consider one another to be viable partners in increasing citizens' safety. Respondents were asked to rank their opinions on Likert-type scales. The first two areas addressed in the questionnaire were related to the nature of existing relationships between the personnel of both organizations and strategies for improving existing relationships. The third area focused on strategies for improving the professional image of security officers, and the fourth area pertained to the future of cooperative policing. Completed questionnaires were returned from 258 officers who attended a monthly meeting of officers in a large agency in the summer of 2003. A total of 134 usable questionnaires were obtained from private security officers who worked for one of the largest security companies in the Nation in the summer of 2003. 5 tables and 35 references