scholarly journals Policing the COVID-19 Pandemic: Exploratory Study of the Types of Organizational Changes and Police Activities Across the Globe

2021 ◽  
pp. 105756772110128
Author(s):  
Jon Maskály ◽  
Sanja Kutnjak Ivković ◽  
Peter Neyroud

The COVID-19 pandemic upended major facets of global society, including policing. This study describes three types of changes that police agencies in counties worldwide made. First, how have various domains of policing changed and how much did they change? Second, were these changes regulated by the official policy? Third, what are the potential consequences of the changes made during the pandemic? Taking a mixed-methods approach, our quantitative survey data from 27 countries, buttressed by qualitative responses, enable us to examine changes in these three areas. Our results suggest there is a great deal of heterogeneity in the degree of change, the use of policy to make the changes, and the perceived effects of the changes. Some changes (i.e., the use of personal protective equipment) are relatively ubiquitous and common sense based on the pandemic. Other organizational changes show a great deal more variation, especially when considering the valence of the change. Finally, the police executives from these countries express a highly optimistic—and potentially overly rosy—view of the potential longer term consequences of the pandemic or the operational changes made because of it. Overall, the results paint a more complicated picture of the responses to the pandemic made by the police organizations included in our sample. We conclude by discussing the implications of these findings for future research, police practice, and the development of policy.

2012 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 283-307 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeremy M. Wilson ◽  
Justin A. Heinonen

Research has long focused on the size of police agencies, giving little attention to the composition of the workforce itself. Literature in fields such as the military, healthcare, organizational psychology, and business, highlights the importance of workforce structures in meeting both organizational and staff needs. Using data from a national survey, we examine personnel cohorts (i.e., distribution of junior, midlevel, and senior sworn staff) as an element of workforce structure in the largest, U.S. municipal police organizations. We describe the importance of cohort structures for enhancing performance (meeting both organizational and individual needs) and assess variation in cohort structures. We discuss the cohorts in light of their effects on personnel management, and highlight the importance of existing cohort structures when considering major personnel decisions such as hiring freezes, furloughs, layoffs, and buyouts. We summarize future research that could advance theory and policy regarding workforce structures in police and other criminal justice organizations.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas J. Mrozla

PurposeThis study examined how rural police agencies have responded to the COVID-19 pandemic.Design/methodology/approachUsing data from various sources, this study first analyzed what factors influenced agency preparedness to respond to pandemics. Second, it examined how the pandemic influenced specific organizational practices.FindingsFindings revealed that as coronavirus infections increased in counties, supervisors were more likely be tasked with inspecting personal protective equipment (PPE), agencies were more likely to offer pandemic related training, health tracking of officers was more likely to occur and agencies were more likely to encounter a shortage of officers. In addition, as rurality increased, agencies were more likely to offer training but less likely to experience officers contracting COVID-19 and an officer shortage. Lastly, as the rurality of the county in which the agency resides increased, the ability to supply PPE decreased.Practical implicationsBased on these findings, it is imperative that rural police agencies give attention to risk management and the formulation of policy to prepare for public health emergencies.Originality/valueWhile knowledge about how large police agencies in the United States have responded during the coronavirus pandemic is building, little is known about rural policing during pandemics.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
John Shjarback ◽  
Obed Magny

PurposeUsing online survey data from a sample of 440 police officers in California throughout May 2020, the current study collected time-sensitive information on officers' perceptions and departmental experiences in the wake of the pandemic. It examined officers' perceptions of agency responsivity as well as their perceptions of morale, stress and risk following agency responses and changes in policy patterns, service delivery innovations and other administrative challenges.Design/methodology/approachCOVID-19 had a tremendous impact on the law enforcement community, who continued to work and adapt in order to provide public safety. During the first few months of the pandemic, a number of national data collection efforts set out to understand what police agencies, at the organizational-level, were doing to address the crisis. Largely missing from these initial discussions were the perspectives of individual officers, particularly how they felt about their respective departments ensuring safety and balancing risk.FindingsResults from ordinary least squares (OLS) regressions found that the number of departmental changes made in the wake of COVID-19 that reduced police–public contact was associated with (1) increased levels of perceived agency responsivity to officer needs (i.e. balancing officer safety, taking active steps to maintain officers' mental health) and (2) reduced levels of perceived negative outlook (e.g. stress, low morale, danger/risk). Policy implications and the importance of police executives' decisions during crisis are discussed.Originality/valueThis study is one of the first, to the authors’ knowledge, to examine perceptions of policing during the pandemic from an individual officer point of view rather than an organizational standpoint.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lyndal Hickey ◽  
Louise Hams ◽  
Lauren Kosta

PurposeThis paper examines the empirical research on police reassurance following a collective trauma event (CTE).Design/methodology/approachUsing a scoping review methodology, this paper sought to establish the extent, range and nature of published literature on policing responses to collective traumatic events, and to identify key features of this form of direct practice. Included papers needed to focus on police responses oeassurance with the public related to events (pre-or post) that could be regarded as collective trauma events by nature or scale. Searches were conducted using the Web of Science, SCOPUS and PsychINFO databases for literature published between January 2000 and December 2019.FindingsFourteen articles met the inclusion criteria. The key themes identified: (1) measuring the impact of reassurance and community policing; (2) community attitudes to policing and social disorder/critical events; (3) police workforce responses to traumatic events; and (4) interventions to support police to respond to their community.Research limitations/implicationsFuture research needs to examine the elements that create a robust organisational infrastructure that can withstand the demands of policing in ordinary and extraordinary times. Fundamental to the studies in this review is the relationship between the police agencies and the community. The nature of this relationship and how it can be strengthened to ameliorate the negative impact of CTEs in communities needs further exploration.Originality/valueThis paper provides important findings that can inform future reassurance policing practice and research.


2018 ◽  
Vol 56 (3) ◽  
pp. 378-411 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lauren C. Porter ◽  
Alaina De Biasi ◽  
Susanne Mitchell ◽  
Andrew Curtis ◽  
Eric Jefferis

Objectives: Abandoned houses may attract or generate crime; however, little is known about the nature of this relationship. Our study is aimed at better understanding this link. Methods: Focusing on a high-crime neighborhood in Ohio, we use spatial video and calls for service (CFS) to examine how crime changed on streets where abandoned homes were removed. We also draw on the insights of 35 ex-offenders, police officers, and residents to examine how and why abandoned houses are connected to crime in this locale. Results: On average, streets where abandoned houses were razed accounted for a lower proportion of neighborhood crime after removal. Also, a lower proportion of total CFS from these streets related to serious crime. Our narrative data indicate that abandoned houses are opportunistic because they provide cover, unoccupied spaces, and are easy targets. Conclusions: The removal of abandoned housing was associated with positive changes in crime overall; however, our approach revealed interesting variation across streets. We surmise that the relevance of a particular abandoned house may be contingent on the larger context of that street or neighborhood. In order to understand these dynamics, future research should continue to “drill down” into micro-spaces.


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Flynn ◽  
Mary Joyce ◽  
Conall Gillespie ◽  
Mary Kells ◽  
Michaela Swales ◽  
...  

Abstract Background The implementation of evidence-based interventions for borderline personality disorder in community settings is important given that individuals with this diagnosis are often extensive users of both inpatient and outpatient mental health services. Although work in this area is limited, previous studies have identified facilitators and barriers to successful DBT implementation. This study seeks to expand on previous work by evaluating a coordinated implementation of DBT in community settings at a national level. The Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research (CFIR) [1] provided structural guidance for this national level coordinated implementation.Methods A mixed methods approach was utilised to explore the national multi-site implementation of DBT from the perspective of team leaders and therapists who participated in the coordinated training and subsequent implementation of DBT. Qualitative interviews with DBT team leaders ( n = 8) explored their experiences of implementing DBT in their local service and was analysed using content analysis. Quantitative surveys from DBT therapists ( n = 74) examined their experience of multiple aspects of the implementation process including orienting the system, and preparations and support for implementation. Frequencies of responses were calculated. Written qualitative feedback was analysed using content analysis.Results Five themes were identified from the interview data: team formation, implementation preparation, client selection, service level challenges and team leader role. Participants identified team size and support for the team leader as key points for consideration in DBT implementation. Key challenges encountered were the lack of system support to facilitate phone coaching and a lack of allocated time to focus on DBT. Implementation facilitators included having dedicated team members and support from management.Conclusions The barriers and facilitators identified in this study are broadly similar to those reported in previous research. Barriers and facilitators were identified across several domains of the CFIR and are consistent with a recently published DBT implementation Framework [2]. Future research should pay particular attention to the domain of characteristics of individuals involved in DBT implementation. The results highlight the importance of a mandated service plan for the coordinated implementation of an evidence-based treatment in a public health service.


2019 ◽  
Vol 43 (3) ◽  
pp. 180-192
Author(s):  
Mimi M. Kim ◽  
Ann Cheney ◽  
Anita Black ◽  
Roland J. Thorpe ◽  
Crystal Wiley Cene ◽  
...  

Community-engaged research (CEnR) builds on the strengths of the Clinical and Translational Science Awards (CTSA) framework to address health in underserved and minority communities. There is a paucity of studies that identify the process from which trust develops in CEnR partnerships. This study responds to the need for empirical investigation of building and maintaining trust from a multistakeholder perspective. We conducted a multi-institutional pilot study using concept mapping with to better understand how trust, a critical outcome of CEnR partnerships, can act as “social capital.” Concept mapping was used to collect data from the three stakeholder groups: community, health-care, and academic research partners across three CTSAs. Concept mapping is a mixed-methods approach that allows participants to brainstorm and identify factors that contribute to a concept and describe ways in which those factors relate to each other. This study offers important insights on developing an initial set of trust measures that can be used across CTSAs to understand differences and similarities in conceptualization of trust among key stakeholder groups, track changes in public trust in research, identify both positive and negative aspects of trust, identify characteristics that maintain trust, and inform the direction for future research.


2019 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 150-174 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marie-Line Germain ◽  
Phyllis Robertson ◽  
Sarah Minnis

The Problem Social movements can impact organizations and employees through changes in policies and procedures in the workplace. Measuring the degree to which collective protests, rallies, and marches have influenced organizational actions can be complex due to the variance in activist practices and the resistance or amiableness of organizations to change. The Solution Protests, rallies, and marches can create a disruptive stage for challenging and confronting organizational policies and practices that maintain power structures. Through the examination of the literature and the review of recent worldwide events, this article illustrates how social movements have affected organizations and led to organizational changes, illuminating change processes in established fields such as business. Specifically, we aim to answer how protests, rallies, and marches influence organizational policies and practices attributed to human resource development (HRD). We conclude by discussing how a recent social movement is applicable to the field of HRD and suggest areas for future research. The Stakeholders This article may be of interest to employees at all levels of the organization, researchers, and practitioners in the field of HRD.


Author(s):  
Siobhan M. Hartigan ◽  
Kemberlee Bonnet ◽  
Leah Chisholm ◽  
Casey Kowalik ◽  
Roger R. Dmochowski ◽  
...  

There are a variety of factors and influences, both internal and external, that may impact an individual’s public toileting experience and may ultimately have repercussions for bladder health. This study sought to identify predominant constructs underlying a women’s attitude towards using restrooms at work, at school, and in public in order to develop a conceptual model incorporating these themes. We performed a secondary analysis of a cross-sectional, survey-based study that included open-ended questions about limitations to restroom use using a mixed-methods approach. Qualitative data coding and analysis was performed on 12,583 quotes and, using an iterative inductive-deductive approach, was used to construct the conceptual framework. Our conceptual framework reveals a complicated interplay of personal contexts, situational influences, and behavioral strategies used by women to manage their bladder and bowel habits away from home. These findings can inform future research and public policy related to bladder health awareness related to toilet access in the workplace and in public.


2019 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 202-231
Author(s):  
Bitna Kim ◽  
Tao Xu

In recent decades, police organizations have encountered difficulty in maintaining employees; a large number of police officers are leaving the service early. Using data collected from three police colleges in three different provinces in China, this study examines the mechanism of cadets’ career plan or turnover intention. Specifically, the test of a mediating mechanism in this study demonstrates the extent to which satisfaction mediates the relationship between distal factors and career plans among police cadets. Besides, the test of a moderating mechanism focuses on the possibility that the predictors differ in the relationship with cadets’ career plans by the degree of satisfaction. This study results found that satisfaction had no mediating effect. Instead, results showed that police cadets’ satisfaction is a strong moderator in the link between predictors and their career plans. Implications for recruitment, training, and retention strategies, as well as avenues for future research, are then discussed.


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