POLICE ADMINISTRATION: THE RESPONSE TO CHANGE*

Abstract: The organizational structure of Australian police forces is based on the quasi-military pattern established by the London Metropolitan Police Force. While community values, attitudes and aspirations remained comparatively static, this pattern seemed to both police and the public to be workable, if not completely satisfactory. However, it is becoming increasingly evident to police administrators that the traditional pattern of organization is experiencing difficulties in coping with a changing society. In America, in particular, attention has been given to attempts to replace the traditional police bureaucracy with a more flexible, participatory, science-based structure. Changes in police structures come about very slowly for a variety of reasons, including bureaucratic resistance to change. Australian Commissioners of Police are usually career appointments from within the force of practical officers who are not necessarily interested in administrative principles. Ministerial heads also are often not committed to innovative programs. In most cases, changes within Australian police forces have resulted from outside pressures, and major reforms have usually been associated with outside appointments to the post of Commissioner. A Commissioner who elects to be an innovator needs powerful backing from his minister and from within his organization, the support of influential community voices, reasonably long tenure of office and adequate financial allocations. His freedom to introduce reform is also affected by the philosophy of his police union. Available data suggest that our traditional law enforcement system is not succeeding in its prime tasks of preventing and solving crimes. Several courses of action are open to enable Australia's law enforcement agencies to be more responsive to a changing society: senior police officers should establish a national forum to enable their views to be heard, opportunities should be provided for concerned civilians to be informed about and involved in crime prevention and criminal justice, and the feasibility of copying the American system of State Criminal Justice Planning Agencies should be examined.