Patrol officer arrest rates: A study of the social organization of police work

The study discussed in this paper examined the variation in felony arrest rates among patrol officers performing similar duties in the same patrol area. Data were obtained by records review, self-administered questionnaires, unstructured interviews and participant observation during a two-year field presence in a New York City Police precinct. Analysis of the data led to the conclusion that the patrol officers control their enforcement patterns through a process of role adaptation. This functional division of labor serves the individual needs of the officers as they mediate conflicting demands of police bureaucracy and community.