The Ideal Police Force, Research Paper Example

There has long been an emphasis in most industrialized nations to create bureaucratic police agencies.   The more structured and large the force, the more independent the police agency becomes, and it has been commonly thought that this leads to greater efficiency, as well as shielding the police from shifting political influences (Deflem, 2010,  p. 20).   The reasoning is sound, and it continues to guide nations achieving recognition as world powers.   The appeal of such a police force, vast and rigidly structured, is likely to influence the directions policing takes well into the 21^st century, particularly as terrorism concerns remain an international issue.

At the same time, there is an ironic shift from many countries to democratic policing, which is far more dependent upon good will and interaction within the society being policed.   It is probable that these two contrasting ideologies will shape police forces in years to come, ideally in a way that incorporates the best aspects of each.    As police administrations stress the interactions within community policing, the officers then experience that the personal and respectful service they provide creates a mutual consideration.   The better officers actually know the residents of the community, the easier their job becomes because they are more in tune with the needs, realities, and potential dangers of the situations they encounter (Jurkanin, Hoover, 2007,  p. 171).  The advantages of such a way of proceeding are too great to be ignored, and must be reinforced within existing police forces.

Simultaneously, there must an ongoing commitment to the importance of an independent, and even bureaucratic, force.   The police operating under any ideology must, first and foremost, maintain the law, and the potential danger in democratic policing, which directly involves citizen input, is that social issues and trends may be mistaken for actual law and policy.   The 21^st century police – and public – must understand that laws usually reflect changes in society in a responsive way, and it would be irresponsible for any policing to anticipate such changes before they are made into statutes.   Then, as noted, it is critical that the police remain somewhat removed from mainstream functions of society:  “If there is a change of government, it is important that the police continue to operate under politically neutral democratic principles…” (Crawshaw, Cullen, Williamson, 2007,  p. 353).   Provided there is a consistent respect for this fact in evidence, the new police forces should then be more free to engage in community, or democratic, policing.

References

Crawshaw, R.,  Cullen, S., & Williamson, T. (2007.)  Human Rights and Policing.  Leiden, The Netherlands: Martin Nijhoff Publishers.

Deflem, M. (2010.)  The Policing of Terrorism: Organizational and Global Perspectives.  New York, NY: Taylor & Francis.

Jurkanin, T. J., & Hoover, L. T. (2007.)  Improving Police Response to Persons with Mental Illness: A Progressive Approach.  Springfield, IL: Charles C Thomas Publishers.