The effects of supervisor education and training on police use of force

Police supervisors play a critical role in preventing unreasonable use of force. Despite their importance, only a few studies have examined the influences of supervisors on their subordinates’ daily practices, especially on their uses of police force. To bridge this gap, the current study explored the relationship between supervisors’ education level and use of force training and subordinate officers’ use of force practices. Using police use of force reports from 2004 to 2007 in a single urban police department, the current study examined how supervisor education and training impact on police use-of-force and found both highly educated and trained supervisors moderate their subordinate officers’ uses of higher levels of force.     

A comparative study of the attitudes of Urban,Suburban and Rural Police Officers in New Jersey regarding the use of force

This article examines the attitudes of sample populations of urban, suburban and rural police officers in New Jersey in regard to a hypothetical use of force scenario. The aim of the study is to identify similarities and differences in the perceptions of officers who are faced with the same type of hypothetical situations but who are exposed to different training, procedural and environmental factors. Police officers in the United States receive different types of training in each state that might influence their attitudes towards the use of force. A pilot study was conducted comparing two urban police departments from two different states and showed some differences in the attitudes of the surveyed officers. To further explore these differences, a more refined look at three police departments in one state (New Jersey) was conducted as part of a doctoral dissertation of the lead author. Research questions are aimed at identifying the differences in the frameworks for the justification of force based on a host of variables. The research questions stipulated that there will be some significant differences in attitudes towards the use of force by the officers, based on physical location of the communities they police. The findings of the study identified additional factors that might influence the officers’ attitudes. Twelve focus groups, four at each of the sites, were analyzed and it appears that there may be a geographic and demographic influence on how the officers respond to the scenario.     

Dangers of police professionalization: An empirical analysis

This study examines relationships between professionalization (measured by the amount of college education and police training) and police officer attitudes. Using data from a survey of 712 police officers in twenty-nine departments in the St. Louis area, the analysis focuses on propositions derived from scholars who have identified harmful effects they expect to flow from the reform. Although the limited operational definition of the key variables and other factors noted in the study require caution in interpreting the findings, little evidence in support of the expected “dangers” is found. This result, in combination with other studies that have failed to find support for the case made for raising the educational level of police, suggests the need to reassess expectations about the impact of college education in policing.     

College students’ perceptions of police use of force: do suspect race and ethnicity matter?

Incidents of police use of force continue to draw a considerable amount of attention from both researchers and the public alike. The purpose of this research is to examine the relationship between suspect race and ethnicity and perceptions of police use of force among college students. Using a vignette research design with manipulated independent variables, this study seeks to answer the question: Do suspect race and ethnicity affect college students’ perceptions of police use of force? Three vignettes were developed regarding an incident in which an encounter between a suspect and a police officer resulted in the officer using force. College students were randomly assigned to one of the three vignettes and were asked to complete a questionnaire. Results indicate that although suspect race and ethnicity do not predict perceptions of police use of force among college students, there are significant respondent race and gender effects. Male and white respondents are significantly more likely to perceive police use of force as justified compared to female and non-white respondents. The policy implications of these findings for police-citizen interactions are discussed.     

The Influence of Police Profanity on Public Perception of Excessive Force

Previous research has examined elements of police performance impacting community policing and police-citizen relationships, but no study has considered the impact of police use of profanity during arrest on public rating of force. Police profanity may negatively bias police-citizen interactions, and this bias could shape later interactions with community members, impact the quality of police-community relations, or even result in public outcry over excessive use of force. The aim of this study was to determine whether officer use of profanity during arrest led to public perception of excessive force and to examine whether gender of the officer or subject affected this relation. Force was evaluated as more excessive when profanity was used, when the subject was a female, and when the officer was a female. Participants who rated force as excessive had significantly more negative attitudes about police and police use of force. These findings have direct implications for police training and suggest that if police avoid the use of profanity, this could result in more positive relationships with the public and fewer allegations of excessive force. Future researchers should further evaluate the nature and impact of gender biases against female police, as they may contribute to reduced opportunities, less frequent promotion, and reduced self-efficacy in female officers.     

Issues in higher education for law enforcement officers: An Illinois study

The issue of whether criminal justice education, or education in general, has had an impact on the quality of policing in the United States has been studied since the mid-1960s. The results have been mixed. This study considers the value of education as it relates to the progress educated officers have made within the ranks of police departments in the state of Illinois. The results indicate that the majority of veteran police officers, particularly those with a college education, strive for promotion but are frustrated when they are not able to achieve it. This may be a factor in another finding, which indicates that a sizable group of subjects reported the strong opinion that promotion is based on politics, not on merit or education. For whatever reasons, it is obvious that in municipal police work, there is never going to be much room at the top. Most officers will serve their entire careers at the level of patrol officer, and those who want to be promoted beyond that rank will continue to seek out any positive enhancement that might distinguish them.     

Is there a distinct profile of police officers accused of violence? The Israeli case

In recent years, the Israeli National Police has come under attack for excessive use of physical force. This article focuses on the organizational characteristics of police officers suspected of committing offenses involving the illegal use of force. A random sample of 612 official files opened, investigated, and completed between 1993 and 1998 was examined. The findings show that there are no salient differences between the proportion of the suspect police officers serving at the different geographic police districts in the sample and their proportion in the total police force in recent years. Complaints tend to be submitted against police officers in operational and investigative functions, especially against those of middle and low ranks. Regarding the files' characteristics, many significant differences are found between files opened against regular police (RP) officers (who fulfill traditional police functions) and those opened against officers of the Border Police (BP, who fulfill mainly internal security-related tasks among the Arab population). These differences are mainly explained by factors related to organizational features of the BP.     

Emotion Regulation in Police Officers Following Distress: Effects of Tenure and Critical Incidents

This study focuses on the functionality of emotion regulation of police officers who have or have not experienced a work-related critical incident. Traumatic events experienced by police officers may have long-lasting and significant consequences, including health concerns, emotional difficulties, impairment in social functioning, and they may have an impact on work performance. The hypotheses outline the expected results to include higher scores for officers who had been involved in one or more critical incidents in emotional well-being concerns and more difficulties with emotion regulation as compared to officers who had not experienced a critical incident. The research design employs written instruments including the General Health Questionnaire-30 to measure general emotional well-being, the Impact of Events Scale to measure the impact of a past traumatic event, and the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale to measure current problems with emotion regulation. Participants consist of 76 full-time police officers assigned to patrol in two police agencies. The findings, analyzed through analysis of variance, did not include significant differences between those groups as expected; however, there were unexpected findings. These findings were that although newer officers were less likely to have experienced one or more work-related critical incidents, they measured higher in measures of emotion regulation difficulties and concerns regarding emotional well-being than did the more tenured officers. The social implications of this study include increased officer and agency awareness and increased use of effective intervention. Implications for future study include the need to further explore emotional challenges that may be experienced by new police officers.     

Getting stripes: Educational achievement and study strategies used by sergeant promotional candidates

This paper examines the link between higher education and performance on the written portion of the promotional process for the rank of police sergeant. The results indicate test scores correlate positively with educational achievement. However, this effect is strongly related to the number of different study methods candidates use when preparing for the test. While a college degree appears useful in promotional competition, candidates who lack such a formal credential can mitigate its advantage by relying upon multiple study methods.     

Female officers and the ethic of care: Does officer gender impact police behaviors?

Most of the empirical literature on gender and policing has assessed gender differences in arrest levels and police use of force. While simple gender differences in police behavior are important for understanding skills men and women bring to the policing occupation, research must also determine under what conditions gender differences emerge and what factors impact the relationship between officer gender and behavior for this knowledge to be constructive. Although sexy, arrest and force decisions occur when police discretion is often limited, adding little to the knowledge of how gender affects everyday police-citizen encounters. Using data from systematic social observations of police-citizen encounters in St. Petersburg, Florida and Indianapolis, Indiana, this article replicates past analyses of gender differences in police utilization of controlling and supporting behaviors, but also extends the analyses by assessing the possible impact of intervening situational and organizational characteristics, determining under what conditions female officers utilize different behaviors from their male counterparts. The findings provide mixed support for the general hypothesis of gender-specific responses. Consistent with previous literature, this research suggests that women are much less likely than men to utilize extreme controlling behavior, such as threats, physical restraint, search, and arrest. Surprisingly, the findings do not confirm that women are more likely than men to use supporting behaviors, even when controlling for women's greater likelihood to hold community policing assignments. These findings, while unexpected, are important. Simply assuming female officers manifest stereotypically feminine traits in policing tasks is clearly an overly simplistic conceptualization of the meaning and impact of gender in policing. The implications for female officers, policing, and future research are discussed.     

Police Body-Worn Cameras: Perceptions of Law Enforcement Leadership

Many people are enthusiastic about the potential benefits of police body-worn cameras (BWC). Despite this enthusiasm, however, there has been no research on law enforcement command staff perceptions of BWCs. Given the importance that law enforcement leadership plays in the decision to adopt and implement BWCs, it is necessary to assess their perceptions. This is the first study to measure law enforcement leadership attitudes toward BWCs. The study relies on data collected from surveys administered to command staff representing local, state and federal law enforcement agencies in a large southern county. Among the major perceptual findings are that command staff believe BWCs will impact police officers’ decisions to use force in encounters with citizens and police will be more reluctant to use necessary force in encounters with the public. Respondents also believe that use of BWCs is supported by the public because society does not trust police, media will use BWC data to embarrass police, and pressure to implement BWCs comes from the media. Perceptions of the impact of BWCs on safety, privacy, and police effectiveness are also discussed.     

Do they Aggress Earlier? Investigating the Effects of Ego Depletion on Police Officers’ Use of Force Behavior

Endowed with the state monopoly on the legitimate use of even potentially lethal force, it is intolerable for police officers to act outside the governing legal and ethical framework. At the same time, officers are expected to exert self-control and refrain from excessive use of force when they deal with provocative and perilous situations. This study sought to investigate corresponding self-control and self-control failures through the role of ego depletion in the decision to use force by police officers. Two experiments were conducted using officers from a German State Police force, requiring the participants to use force against a provocative role player. Experiment 1 found that the ego depletion measure failed and there were no differences between the groups. Using a different ego depletion method, experiment 2 found that ego-depleted participants aggressed earlier than controls. These results indicate that circumstances that produce ego depletion could lead to the inappropriate use of force through reducing self-control. This has major implications for the police use of force and how we understand police officers’ decision-making in response to provocation.     

Assessing police treatment in Ecuador: the view of satisfied and disaffected female serious offenders

This empirical study examines procedural justice perceptions among 51 female serious offenders in Ecuador, with the aim of identifying differences between those women who were satisfied with law enforcement and those who were not. The results demonstrate that when women were treated with courtesy and respect, and their rights were acknowledged, they felt satisfied with the police, in a way that they did not give importance to the irregularities they observed while arrested and in custody. On the other hand, the majority of women participants were dissatisfied with the police. Their dissatisfaction with, and lack of trust in, the authorities affected their desire to cooperate with police activities. The study also demonstrates that, although the Ecuadorian police force has made considerable efforts in promoting citizens’ trust during the last 7 years, corruption and illegal police conduct when dealing with offenders are far from uncommon.     

The impact of TASERs on police use-of-force decisions: Findings from a randomized field-training experiment

This paper presents findings from a randomized field-training experiment designed to study the impact TASERs on police officers’ use-of-force decisions. Officers were randomly assigned to either a treatment group (with TASERs) or a control group (without TASERs) and then participated in training scenarios involving different levels of suspect resistance. The study investigates whether and to what extent officers armed with the TASER use it as an alternative to other types of less-lethal force (e.g., empty hands, pepper spray, and the baton) and the firearm, controlling for the level of suspect resistance. The findings indicate that officers who were armed with the TASER were significantly less likely to deploy pepper spray and the baton in response to aggressive physical resistance. Additionally, the results show that officers equipped with the TASER were less likely to discharge their firearm when confronted with suspect resistance that was potentially lethal. No differences in police behavior occurred in response to passive suspect resistance.     

The distribution of police use of force across patrol and specialty units: a case study in BWC impact

Journal of Experimental Criminology - To examine differences in use of force by police patrol and specialized units, and the impact of body-worn cameras (BWCs) on use of force in these groups. We...     

The frequency and nature of resolution of potential police provoked shooting encounters

Helping people in acute psychiatric crisis has become an increasingly common part of modern community policing. In certain extreme cases, police may be faced with a suicidal individual who intends to intentionally provoke police to shoot them. While fatalities are fortunately rare, anecdotal reports from frontline police suggest that these kinds of encounters are occurring on a regular basis. This paper explores 2350 psychiatric crisis incidents over an eight-month period in Victoria, Australia, and assesses the frequency and nature of potential police-provoked shootings resolved through non-fatal means. Contextual factors relating to the person's behaviour and police responses, and the person's psychiatric and criminal histories were considered to elucidate characteristics common to these incidents. Results suggest that police are potentially encountering a person who is suicidal and trying to provoke police to shoot them more than twice a week. These individuals share a number of common characteristics with those who have been fatally shot in similar circumstances and are quite different from those who attempt self-inflicted suicide. Results are discussed in relation to the impact of previous criminal contact from both the suspect and police perspectives.     

College education for police: Problems in measuring component and extraneous variables

There is a need for the better control of methods when measuring the impact of college education on police. Current findings are generally drawn from a base of inadequately designed research that leaves us without a firm picture of the effects of a college education. Design problems are discussed centering on the difficulties associated with controlling for component and extraneous variables. Particular attention is devoted to the primary subconcepts inherent in the global concept “college education.” The factors of duration, environment, emphasis, and mix are discussed as central considerations of research design.     

Justifying violence: legitimacy,ideology and public support for police use of force

Under what conditions do people support police use of force? In this paper we assess some of the empirical links between police legitimacy, political ideology (right-wing authoritarianism and social dominance orientation), and support for ‘reasonable’ use of force (e.g. an officer striking a citizen in self-defence) and ‘excessive’ use of force (e.g. an officer using violence to arrest an unarmed person who is not offering violent resistance). Analysing data from an online survey with US participants (n?=?186) we find that legitimacy is a positive predictor of reasonable but not excessive police use of force, and that political ideology predicts support for excessive but not reasonable use of force. We conclude with the idea that legitimacy places normative constraints around police power. On the one hand, legitimacy is associated with increased support for the use of force, but only when violence is bounded within certain acceptable limits. On the other hand, excessive use of force seems to require an extra-legal justification that is – at least in our analysis – partly ideological. Our findings open up a new direction of research in what is currently a rather sparse psychological literature on the ability of legitimacy to ‘tame’ coercive power.     

Advancing police use of force research and practice: urgent issues and prospects

Leading police scholars and practitioners were asked to reflect on the most urgent issues that need to be addressed on the topic of use of force. Four themes emerged from their contributions: use of force and de-escalation training needs to improve and be evaluated; new ways of conceptualizing use of force encounters and better use of force response models need to be developed; the inequitable application of force, and how to remediate biases, needs to be more fully understood; and misconceptions about police use of force need to be identified and corrected. The highlighted topics serve as an agenda for future research. Such research should provide greater insight into when, where, and why force is used by police officers, and how it can be applied appropriately. If implemented, the practical recommendations included in the contributions should have a positive impact on police performance, public trust and confidence in the police, and citizen and officer safety.     

Striking Out: Race and Support for Police Use of Force

This research examines whites’ and blacks’ support for police use of force using a survey‐based experiment that varies the race of the offender across four different scenarios. Bivariate results show that the race of the offender influences blacks’ approval for the use of force by police, but does not affect whites’ approval. Multivariate analyses examine whether the factors influencing support for police use of force vary depending on the race of the offender. Results indicate that the predictors for approval of police use of force differ by the race of respondent, the race of offender, and the appropriateness of the use of force. The implications of the results for police–community relations are discussed.