OBSERVATION,THE POLICE AND PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION: INTRODUCTION

This conversation about the merits of ethnography in police studies began at the ‘Ethnography in Policing’ panel at the Political Studies Association Conference held in Leeds in 2005. Subsequent correspondence and occasional one‐to‐one meetings led to this symposium.     

CONSUMERISM AND THE PUBLIC SECTOR: HOW WELL DOES THE COAT FIT?

Consumerism attempts to redress the imbalance of power that exists between those who produce goods and services, and those for whom they are provided. To achieve this end, five basic principles have been evolved which seek to improve consumers' access, choice, information, redress and representation. The article examines the relevance of these principles to services provided by local government and the health service. Its conclusion – that they are useful but not necessarily enough – is perhaps surprising, given the author's concern to place consumers' interests centre stage in discussions about what public services are for, and how they should be run. The article then considers whether the messages of consumerism are reaching their mark, and finally points to those issues which managers of public services – both politicians and professionals – must face if consumerism is to leave a legacy of real value.     

Innovation and Innovators Inside Government: From Institutions to Networks

Innovation and innovators inhabit an institutional space, which is partially defined by formal positions and partially by informal networks. This article investigates the role of politicians and bureaucrats in fostering innovation inside government and provides an empirical explanation of who the innovators are, whether this is mostly an attribute of position or role, or mostly an effect of certain forms of networking. The study uses original data collected from 11 municipal governments in Australia in order to define and describe the normative underpinnings of innovation inside government and to show the importance of advice and strategic information networks among politicians and senior bureaucrats (n = 947). Social network analysis is combined with conventional statistical analysis in order to demonstrate the comparative importance of networks in explaining who innovates.     

Achieving and Managing Equality in the Criminal Justice Process: Do the New Equality Measures Go Far Enough?

Abstract: This article will explore some of the legal and organisational challenges facing the various agencies involved in the delivery of criminal justice, in the UK, in adhering to the Equality Act 2006, Equality Duties and the forthcoming Single Equality Act (which, proposes a Single Equality Duty). We will consider the impact of these changes with reference to European legislation. Of particular interest will be the themes of effective implementation of the current Duties, equality of access and equality of outcome for both victims and offenders to appropriate services to tackle offending behaviour and the prevention of crime. This article will highlight issues surrounding impact assessment and the role of agency discretion and regulation. We offer some comments on future directions and the role of the regulatory bodies including the Equalities and Human Rights Commission (EHRC).     

HOW POLITICIANS AND BUREAUCRATS NETWORK: A COMPARISON ACROSS GOVERNMENTS

Effective public administration relies on the passage of information through interpersonal communication networks. While we have a vast research literature concerning formal structures and roles in organizations, including public agencies and government institutions, we know far less about the flow of information through semiformal, voluntary interactions. In this paper we use a large survey to explore the networking patterns of politicians and bureaucrats and to compare these with the more formal structural attributes of hierarchy and functional specialization. Social network analysis and standard quantitative measures are used to examine which actors are most central in advice and strategic information networks and how this varies across governments. The results suggest that the communication networks of politicians and bureaucrats differ substantially, with politicians being surprisingly peripheral in their patterns of interaction. Differences across governments are also observed with some municipalities being markedly more hierarchical, cross‐organizational, and externally focused in their networking behaviour.     

MANAGING THE DIARY: WHAT DOES A POLICE COMMISSIONER DO?

What do we know about the work of a Police Commissioner? Using the example of Australia, this article provides a perspective of the working environment within which a Police Commissioner operates. The emphasis is on the Commissioner’s office and how that office manages a constantly changing diary in an unpredictable and uncertain environment both internally and externally. Through an analysis of a workplace diary spanning five years, interviews and non‐participation observation notes, the article reflects on the working life of an Australian Police Commissioner. It demonstrates that this Police Commissioner divides her time between management duties and representing the Office of Commissioner in the wider community. It also highlights the importance of external leadership and the importance of working with communities and connecting with external constituencies. The article shows that qualitative analysis in the form of interviews and non‐participant observation can provide a stronger interpretation and understanding of quantitative data.     

INFLUENCE AND SELECTION PROCESSES IN WEAPON CARRYING DURING ADOLESCENCE: THE ROLES OF STATUS,AGGRESSION, AND VULNERABILITY*

The role of peers in weapon carrying (guns, knives, and other weapons) inside and outside the school was examined in this study. Data stem from a longitudinal study of a high-risk sample of male students (7th to 10th grade; N = 167) from predominantly Hispanic low-socio-economic-status schools in the United States. Longitudinal social-network models were used to test whether similarity in weapon carrying among friends results from peer influence or selection. From a goal-framing approach, we argue that weapon carrying might function as a status symbol in friendship networks and, consequently, be subject to peer influence. The findings indicate that weapon carrying is indeed a result of peer influence. The role of status effects was supported by findings that weapon carrying increased the number of friendship nominations received by peers and reduced the number of given nominations. In addition, peer-reported aggressiveness predicted weapon carrying 1 year later. These findings suggest that adolescent weapon carrying emerges from a complex interplay between the attraction of weapon carriers for affiliation, peer influence in friendship networks, and individual aggression.     

THE FUTURE OF NETWORK GOVERNANCE RESEARCH: STRENGTH IN DIVERSITY AND SYNTHESIS

The popularity and scope of network governance research and practice continues to expand from its divergent foundations, assumptions and methodological positions. This paper introduces a symposium of papers on this substantial sub‐field by first summarizing the sprawling research endeavour that comprises it. The main theoretical and empirical approaches that have been used to guide it to date are then briefly described, emphasizing recent debates about interpretivism and decentring. Next, it suggests that a robust and interesting future for network governance requires diversity, rather than adherence to a single approach. It is argued that more sophisticated approaches for examining network governance are fashioned through a synthesis of ideas and methods to create an analysis of networks as networks. This is especially the case where some formal analysis of network structure is used in concert with an interpretive examination of action and process. Finally, the papers in the symposium are introduced.