Police perceptions of their working environment: Surveying the small department1
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International Journal of Police Science & Management Volume 7 Number 4
Police perceptions of their working
environment: Surveying the small
department1
Barbara Sims†, Jim Ruiz‡, Ginger Weaver§ and William L. Harvey¥
†
(Corresponding author) Penn State Harrisburg, School of Public Affairs, 777 West
Harrisburg Pike, Middletown, PA 17057. Tel: (717) 948 6044; Fax: (717) 948 6320; email:
bas4@psu.edu
‡
Internship Coordinator, Pennsylvania State University, Capital College at Harrisburg,
School of Public Affairs, Criminal Justice Program, 777 W. Harrisburg Pike, Middletown, PA
17057. Tel: (717) 948 6292; Fax: (717) 948 6320; email: jmr33@psu.edu
§
c/o Barbara Sims, Penn State Harrisburg, School of Public Affairs. 777 West Harrisburg
Pike, Middletown, PA 17057. Tel: (717) 948 6044; Fax: (717) 948–6320
¥
Chief of Police, Lebanon City Police Department South 8th Street, Lebanon, PA 17042.
Tel: (717) 272 6611; Fax (717) 272 6758; email: wharvey@lebanon-pd.com
Received 28 February 2005; accepted 18 June 2005.
Barbara Sims, PhD is Associate Professor of illness, use of force, canine deployment, and
Criminal Justice at Penn State Harrisburg where the Ku Klux Klan.
she serves as Coordinator of the Criminal Justice Ginger Weaver is a graduate of the Penn State
Program. She has published articles in various Harrisburg’s Criminal Justice Program.
criminal justice peer-reviewed outlets and her William L. Harvey is Chief of Police of the
latest work is an edited volume that addresses Lebanon, Pennsylvania, police department. He is
issues associated with treating the substance- the former Director of Training and a retired from
addicted offender. Currently, Dr Sims serves as a the Savannah (GA) Police Department. He is
research and data support person for the Penn- long-time police trainer and author and an
sylvania Sex Offender Management Team and on Advisory Board member of the International
Law Enforcement and Educators Trainers
the Institutional Review Board of the Penn State
Association.
College of Medicine.
Jim Ruiz received his PhD from the College of
Criminal Justice at Sam Houston State Uni- ABSTRACT
versity. He began his career in criminal justice
This paper reports the findings of an exploratory
as a police officer with the New Orleans Police study designed to provide a local police chief and
Department in 1967 where he served in the other key stakeholders with perceptions of police
National Crime Information Center (NCIC), officers related to policing a small town in south
Patrol, Communications, Mounted, and Emer- central Pennsylvania. Following a brief review of
gency Services Section. He joined the Penn the literature that examines many of the issues
State Harrisburg School of Public Affairs Crimi- addressed in the present study, the methodology
nal Justice Program faculty in August 2000. and major findings from the study are reported
His research interests include police admin- and discussed. The paper concludes with recom- International Journal of Police
Science and Management,
istration and supervision, ethics in policing, mendations for possible interventions that could Vol. 7 No. 4, 2005, pp. 245–263.
© Vathek Publishing,
police interaction with persons with mental be undertaken, by not only the department in 1461–3557
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question, but by small police departments in other concludes with recommendations for possi-
locations as well. ble interventions that could be undertaken,
not only by the department in question, but
by small police departments in other loca-
INTRODUCTION tions as well.
The extant literature on assessments of the
working environment for police officers
overwhelmingly addresses issues associated REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE
with large departments, and primarily in As will be noted below in the methodology
urban areas (Chambers, 2001; Weisheit, section, we attempted to measure police
Wells & Falcone, 1997). Chambers (2001, officers’ perceptions about several key
p. 421) argues that, ‘The absence of research underlying issues. The purpose of this
on rural or small town police forces is review is to give some attention to previous
disturbing when the majority of law studies that have done the same.
enforcement agencies in the United States
are located in rural or semi-rural areas.’ On-the-job stress for police officers
According to Reaves (1993), 80 per cent of The external factors related to any occupa-
police departments in the US are located in tion often do produce individual stress. Fac-
rural or small towns. tors related internally to the occupation,
There are bound to be some differences however, are often even more stress induc-
between urban and rural and/or small town ing than external factors. Symonds (1970)
departments, not the least of which is the discussed internal stressors related to polic-
lower tax base quite often found in lesser ing such as rules, policies, displeasure with
populated areas (Chambers, 2001). None- job assignments, and limited promotions.
theless, smaller geographical areas quite Sometimes, internal stressors lead to a
often have some of the same problems as do breakdown in communication and in
larger areas, for example, depressed econo- morale. According to Martelli, Waters and
mies, lack of meaningful jobs, etc, such Martelli (1989, p. 272), ‘The administrative
that, at least to a certain extent, inferences hassles often display a greater relationship to
can be made from studies of larger depart- attitudes than the physical and psychological
ments about how they could apply to the hazards associated with police work’.
smaller department. As some of the lit- A study by Spielberger, Westbury, Grier,
erature addressed below reveals, for exam- and Greenfield (1981) found that on-the-
ple, those studies that have compared across job stress for police officers comes mainly
department size have discovered several from the administration. The authors also
common denominators related to on-the- suggest that much of the evidence points to
job stress experienced by police officers. the fact that stress among officers can stem
The purpose of this paper is to report from the size of the department, the style of
findings from an exploratory study designed policing under which the department oper-
to provide a local police chief, and other ates, and the influence and perceptions of
key stakeholders, with perceptions of police fellow officers. Spielberger et al. (1981)
officers related to policing a small town in found that officers from smaller depart-
south central Pennsylvania. The method- ments are more likely to be stressed over a
ology and major findings from the study are shortage of officers on the streets, but tend
discussed first, following a brief review of to experience the same sort of stressors as
the literature that examines many of the do medium and large departments. Across
issues we addressed in the present study. It all sizes of departments, however, the
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authors found that police officer stress Sims, Scarborough, and Ahmad (2003)
comes mainly from the department envi- included a series of questions operation-
ronment, and not explicitly from the size of alised to measure officer’s support for con-
the department. Spielberger et al. (1981, cepts associated with community policing
p. 56) conclude that officer stress can be and with traditional policing. Overwhelm-
reduced through ‘good training, effective ingly, officers agreed more with questions
support and counselling, and careful selec- about community policing than with ques-
tion of qualified candidates’. tions about traditional policing. Interest-
Metcalf and Dick (2001, p. 415) lend ingly, the authors were able to demonstrate
support to the findings of Speilberger et al. that the more positive attitudes toward
(1981) by concluding that ‘findings strongly female officers were directly correlated
support the proposition that having the with higher agreement with the commu-
opportunity to participate in decisions, feel- nity policing questions (Sims, Scarborough
ing that you have the support of your & Ahmad, 2003).
supervisor, and getting satisfactory levels of
feedback on job performance and the needs Street-level discretion and the use of
of the role, all have a strong impact on force
organisational commitment, and do so at all
According to Chambers (2001, p. 426),
levels of the police hierarchy’.
‘Police exercise of discretion is a function of
Officers’ views on traditional and the relations between departmental norms
community policing and policies, officer autonomy, and citizens’
preferences’. In essence, street-level
Lurigio and Skogan (1994) examined police
decision-making by police officers is influ-
officers’ views toward community policing
and found that officers were undecided enced simultaneously by departmental rules
about their perceptions of this particular about the use of discretion, the extent to
model of policing. It was also suggested that which the department is decentralised, and
there are many factors that need to be the more general views and expectations by
implemented to ensure that community the citizenry. There is little doubt that
policing is effective for the police and those police officers have some autonomy when
they protect (Lurigio & Skogan, 1994). For it comes to decision-making, especially in
optimum success, the authors suggest that patrol work where most policing activities
there must be extensive planning, with an take place. Weick (1976, p. 7) suggests that
understanding that not all officers are going police organisations are ‘loosely coupled’
to ‘police’ the same under community organisations that allow for adaption to
policing, and that the overall work environ- ‘quick changes in the environment than
ment under any new policing model calls would be true if it were tightly coupled’.
for careful coaching and changing the over- There is little doubt also that the poli-
all work environment from the inside out. cies associated with the use of discretion
Lurigio and Skogan (1994, p. 428) con- developed by departments, along with
clude that ‘preacademy attitudes and the how tight or relaxed those policies are
informal culture of a police agency can be a when applied ‘in the street,’ greatly influ-
more powerful force in shaping the attitudes ence decisions made by individual officers
and beliefs of new officers than formal when responding to situational events that
academy and/or field training’. call for some attention by the police. In a
In a study of police officers asking more centralised department, however,
about their perceptions of female officers, officers’ ability to decide a course of
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action on their own is greatly diminished individuals simply on the basis of the indi-
(Chambers, 2001). vidual’s status suggests the need for cultural
Studies from the 1970s and 1980s recog- diversity training, emphasizing departmen-
nised the role that relational distance plays tal values, and initiating open discussions on
in police use of discretion (eg, see Black, the importance of accountability to the law’
1980: Reiss, 1971). There is every reason to (Worden, 1995, p. 244).
believe that police make decisions based in
part on how closely they see themselves as Policing persons with mental illness
being connected with local communities. In the early 1960s, research conducted on
Black (1980, p. 4) noted that, ‘Relational treatment of persons with mental illness
distance is measured by the scope, fre- found that they were not receiving effective
quency and the duration of interaction treatment, nor were they being given the
between people’. More often than not, how tools necessary to reintegrate into society
the laws are enforced by police officers, (PERF, 1997). Eventually, as a result of a
depends on how well officers know the series of court decisions, people with men-
citizens they police and how closely citizens tal illness were released into the community
‘resemble themselves’ (Chambers, 2002, under the premise that they would receive
p. 426). better treatment in a community-based set-
In a qualitative study of a small depart- ting (Perkins, Cordner, and Scarborough,
ment, Chambers (2002) found that, con- 1999; Cumming & Cumming, 1965). Ruiz
trary to her original expectations, the use of (1993) noted that most state governments
police discretion is greatly curtailed when a took this opportunity to discharge large
strict policy is put in place by the police numbers of people with mental illness back
chief. According to Chambers, this is pri- into the community under the guise of
marily due to a desire by the Chief to satisfy receiving services from community-based
local citizens, and thus head off any possible resources. However, due to financial prob-
complaint being filed against one of his or lems and the reluctance of persons with
her officers. It could be that although one mental illness to participate, this dream was
might expect a more relaxed and decen- never realised (Perkins et al., 1999).
tralised use of discretion policy in a small The deinstitutionalisation of persons
department than would be found in a larger with mental illness that began in the 1960s
urban department, the very nature of the proved to be a policy that came up short
intimacy of relations between officers and when it comes to being able to meet the
citizens in a smaller area could actually needs of this population in the community
agitate for the diminishing autonomy of setting (Perkins, et al., 1999). Police officers
police officers in street-level decision- have been required to handle many of the
making. issues associated with persons with mental
Relational distance has also been found illness in their interactions with others in
to be closely related to the use of force by local communities (Bittner, 1967; Teplin,
police officers. Muir (1977) states that offi- 1980). Ruiz (1993) noted that police
cers are more likely to use force when they officers have encountered difficulty obtain-
do not relate well to those they police. ing proper services for persons with mental
Similarly, Worden (1995) notes that officers illness, an eventuality that often results in
are most likely to use unacceptable force the entry of such people into the criminal
when they express more positive views justice system. He further notes that police
toward the use of force in general. ‘Given officers are the primary responders to
the fact that officers used more force on mental health emergencies. Because of this,
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they have come to be been called ‘gate- was inappropriate. Since only one question
keepers,’ street-corner psychiatrists, and was placed between the statements this
social workers (Bittner, 1967; Borum, seems to suggest that the respondents’ per-
Deane, & Steadman, 1998; Cumming & sonal view may differ from what might be
Cumming, 1965; Sheridan & Teplin, 1981; considered a general approach. Finally,
Teplin, 1986; Teplin & Pruett, 1992). How- about 53 per cent believed they were qual-
ever, most police officers do not believe ified to handle CFS involving persons with
that handling ‘mentals’ should be their mental illness.
responsibility (Ruiz, 2002), and also believe
that there is a shortage of training in this
critical area. In a study of patrol officers, THE PRESENT STUDY
Perkins (1996) found that officers stressed In the spring of 2003, the lead author
the need for enhanced training in dealing contracted with the Lebanon City Crime
effectively with persons with mental illness, Commission to conduct both a citywide
instead of training to recognise various citizen survey (the citizen survey) and a
types of mental illness. survey of its local police officers (the LCPD
Ruiz (1993) noted that a key problem survey). Lebanon City has a population of
shared by many police departments is the approximately 28,000, and is the County
lack of policies and procedures to guide Seat for Lebanon County. In the most
officers when managing persons with men- recent past, the city has had a significant
tal illness. In a survey of 164 police depart- increase in the Hispanic population (12 per
ments, he found that some departments had cent) and this change has created some
comprehensive polices and procedures to discontent in Lebanon’s local communities
guide their officers. Yet, there were other that is best described as culture conflict.
departments whose policies had not been Further, and not surprisingly, there have
modified since deinstitutionalisation, and been some challenges to the local police
many lacked formal polices and procedures department in adapting to this most rapid
altogether. change in the overall racial/ethnic back-
In addition, Ruiz (2002) discovered that ground of the city.
seven per cent of calls for service (CFS) The citizen survey utilised a random
involved persons with mental illness, and telephone procedure that yielded approx-
that slightly over eight per cent of respon- imately 850 completed interviews. Citizens
dents said that their officers sometimes had were asked various questions that addressed
to resort to the use of physical force. On a perceptions of neighbourhoods and
more positive note, he found that over 56 attitudes toward local police. The LCPD
per cent of respondents disagreed that per- survey utilised a self-administered survey-
sons with mental illness are dangerous. document that consisted of a 56-item
Over 62 per cent of respondents reported questionnaire. An effort is made at the end
that, as a matter of policy/practice, quick of this paper to address briefly the nexus
handling of a CFS involving persons with between how citizens view police and,
mental illness was the incorrect approach conversely, how police view the citizens
(‘Persons with mental illness are best han- they police.
dled quickly.’). However, when the question Prior to administering the survey, we
was personalised, (‘When I am assigned a met with the Chief of LCPD and a repre-
CFS involving a person with mental illness, sentative of the police union, in an effort to
I try to resolve it quickly’), slightly over 53 ensure that the questionnaire was capturing
per cent indicated that a quick resolution the information of most use to the city, the
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Lebanon City Crime Commission, and, second wave of data collection took place
most importantly, the police department by way of a memorandum from the research
itself. We also wanted assistance with con- staff, posted in the central meeting room of
vincing the officers that steps were going to the LCPD. The memorandum announced
be taken that would guarantee anonymity that officers who had not participated in the
and confidentiality for those who agreed to original wave of data collection were free to
participate in the study. do so on their own. Copies of the Informed
The above review of the literature sug- Consent Form with instructions on how to
gested many of the overall thematic participate in the study, as well as a copy of
domains for the questionnaire as well as the the survey questionnaire, were attached to
importance of officers’ being assured that the memo. A stamped, self-addressed return
their responses would be handled in an envelope was included with each packet.
ethical and appropriate manner. The major
Officers who wished to do so completed
issues covered by the study include:
the questionnaire and returned it to us. A
● overall perceptions of the working cli- total of 36 of the 47 sworn personnel for
mate within the department; the LCPD (77 per cent) returned usable
● a ranking of the ‘most important’ prob- questionnaires.
lems that should be addressed by the
department’s administration; Profile of respondents
● the extent and nature of the working
Because of the size of the LCPD, several
relationship between the officers, their
fellow officers, and the department’s typical demographic questions were deleted
administration; from the survey questionnaire. For example,
● officers’ perceptions of the administra- if individuals had answered the questions
tion when it comes to equality of treat- about ‘gender’ and about ‘race/ethnicity.’ it
ment, giving clear directives, and would have been possible to identify female
ensuring that officers know they are or minority officers or both. Rank is yet
appreciated; another example of a question typically
● on-the-job stress; included in surveys of police officers that
● officers’ views toward traditional vs com- was deleted here because of the need to
munity policing; ensure officers’ anonymity. Three questions,
● officers’ perceptions of the use of force however, were included to enable us to
and ‘street level’ discretion; examine for differences in responses to
● officers’ opinions about a variety of tasks questions by age, education level, and num-
that are often cited as being important ber of years worked as a police officer. As
ones for police departments to imple- shown in Table 1, a little over one-third (36
ment; and per cent) of respondents to the survey
● perceptions of issues associated with the report being in the 31–40 age category,
policing of persons with mental illness. with 36 per cent reporting their age as over
We administered the survey to officers of 40. Twenty-eight per cent of officers have
the LCPD in two waves of data collection. ‘some college,’ 21 per cent report either a
The first wave was administered on site and two-year vocational degree or an associates
involved meetings with groups of officers. degree, and 31 per cent of officers report
No personal information was asked for and having a college degree. As shown in Table
respondents returned their completed ques- 1, the mean number of years in policing for
tionnaires to us in a sealed envelope. The the sample is 14 years.
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Table 1: Profile of respondents (n = 36)*
Number Percentage
Age
21–30 9 27
31–40 12 36
41–50 9 27
50 or over 3 9
Education
High school or GED 6 19
Some college 9 28
Two-year vocational school 3 9
Associate degree 4 12
College degree 10 31
Number of years in policing
Mean/Average = 14
*Numbers may not total to 36 and percentages to 100 due to rounding and/or missing data.
Descriptive analysis and major ‘poor’ due to the citizens they police. Fifty-
findings nine per cent of respondents said they did
Because of the low sample size, related to so more so due to problems with the
fact that we were surveying a small depart- department’s administration, and 32 per
ment, only basic descriptive analysis was cent replied that they rated the department’s
conducted. These data, however, were able working climate as either ‘fair’ or ‘poor’ for
to provide the LCPD administration, as both reasons.
well as the Crime Commission, with reli-
able baseline measures of issues of key Officers’ perceptions of the top three
importance to both. problems that the department needs
to address
Officers’ overall rating of the working A question asked early in the questionnaire
climate within the department in an effort not to bias possible answers
An initial question asked officers to rate the due to the wording of subsequent ques-
overall working climate within the LCPD tions was open-ended in nature and asked
using a four-point Likert scale of 1 = poor, officers of the LCPD to list the ‘top three
2 = fair, 3 = good, and 4 = excellent. problems’ that the department needed to
Forty-five per cent of the respondents rated address in order to ‘provide a more positive
the department as ‘good’ or ‘excellent,’ with working climate/environment for its police
56 per cent of officers rating the working officers’. The number one problem is the
climate of the LCPD as ‘poor’ or ‘fair.’ need to increase the number of officers in
A follow-up question asked officers who the department. Lack of resources appears
had rated the working climate as either ‘fair’ to create, among this group of respondents,
or poor’ if they had done so because of the a sense of putting their safety ‘in the streets’
citizens they police, or problems that might at risk.
be associated with the department’s admin- The second area that received the most
istration. Only nine per cent of officers said attention is related to the fairness of officers
that they rated the department as ‘fair’ or when it comes to promotions that are free
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of ‘political’ influence. This line of responses ● too much political conflict;
included such comments as: ● constant battle with the City’s Admin-
istration over benefits;
● fairness to all officers; ● a lack of discipline exists within the
● promotions based on ability, training, and department; and,
experience; ● catering too much to citizens when they
● more equitable treatment related to complain.
promotions;
● no more political promotions; everyone Additional findings
should be treated equally; The issues raised early on in the ques-
● objective criteria developed for tionnaire continue to be expressed by way
performance/advancement; and, of the closed-ended questions that come
● rewards or promotions should stop being later. For example, the data in Table 2
given to those who do not earn or reveal that officers do not perceive that
deserve them. they are treated equally or that all officers
A third area of concern is best described as a are treated the same when it comes to
sense of negative morale among officers. incidents involving disciplinary procedures.
This assumption is based on the following About seven in ten report that they either
comments from officers: strongly disagree or disagree with the state-
ment, ‘All officers of this department are
● there needs to be better communication treated equally when it comes to promo-
between patrol and the administration; tion and other job-related merit and/or
● something needs to be done about the reward systems’. Further, the data in Table
morale of our officers; 2 also reveal that a majority of officers
● resolving major issues is called for with within the LCPD (76 per cent) either
less ‘micro managing’ when some auton- disagree or strongly disagree with the state-
omy is justifiable; ment, ‘The Department handles all officers
● there is a lack of leadership in this the same when it comes to incidents
department; involving disciplinary procedures’.
● fairness matters; When asked about whether officers of
● less favouritism; the LCPD work together to meet the
Table 2: Officers’ perceptions of equality of treatment
Question: For each of the following statements, please tell me whether you strongly disagree, disagree, agree,
or strongly agree.
Percentages reported
SD D A SA
All police officers of this department are treated equally when it 31 40 26 3
comes to promotion and other job-related merit and/or
reward systems
The department handles all officers the same when it comes to 34 43 23 —
incidents involving disciplinary procedures
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department’s goals and objectives, 50 per In a similar vein, and as shown in Table 4,
cent of the respondents disagreed with that respondents to the present study indicate
statement. Yet, another 50 per cent said that disagreement with the statement, ‘The Leb-
they would agree with that statement. anon City Police Department offers clear
Overwhelmingly, however, officers believed guidelines for how I can best do my job’.
that their fellow officers are supportive of Fourteen per cent of officers strongly dis-
them when it comes to assisting with solv- agree with that statement, and 47 per cent
ing job-related problems. Ninety-three per disagree with it. The problem associated
cent of LCPD officers said that they agreed with ambiguous or unclear directives from
with that statement, with only eight per supervisors has been found in the police
cent disagreeing. literature to be a major cause of on-the-job
As indicated in Table 3, however, officers stress among police officers. The same is
true for officers’ perceptions that they are
of the LCPD do appear to believe that they
not included in the development of depart-
have a good rapport with their ‘supervisors.’
mental policies, rules, and/or regulations.
Only three per cent of respondents disagree
As shown in Table 4, 91 per cent of officers
with the statement, ‘I believe that my super-
agree or strongly agree with the statement,
visor is friendly and easy to approach’. ‘It is important that Lebanon City police
Further, and overwhelmingly, officers agree officers have input into new policies and
or strongly agree that they are paid atten- processes developed by the department’.
tion to by their supervisor during commu- Similarly, a majority of respondents (74 per
nications with him or her. Ninety-four per cent making strongly disagree or disagree
cent report strong agreement with the state- responses) do not believe that the LCPD
ment: ‘My supervisor is willing to assist me leadership includes lower ranking officers in
in solving job-related problems’. Some offi- the development of departmental policies.
cers do, however, report sometimes getting There is strong agreement, on the other
conflicting directives from their supervisors hand, with the statement, ‘It is clear to me
(25 per cent disagree with that statement) that this Administration appreciates the job
(see Table 3). I am doing’. Almost two-thirds (61 per
Table 3: Officers’ perceptions of supervisors
Question: For each of the following statements, please tell me whether you strongly disagree, disagree, agree,
or strongly agree.
Percentages reported
SD D A SA
I believe that my supervisor is friendly and easy to approach — 3 58 39
When I talk with my supervisor, he/she pays attention to what — — 69 31
I am saying
My supervisor is willing to assist me in solving job-related — 6 47 47
problems
I sometimes get conflicting directives from my supervisors — 25 56 19
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Table 4: Officers’ perceptions of the department’s leadership, having input into new
policies, and ensuring that officers are appreciated for a job well done
Question: For each of the following statements, please tell me whether you strongly disagree, disagree, agree,
or strongly agree.
Percentages reported
SD D A SA
The Lebanon City Police Department offers clear guidelines for 14 47 36 3
how I can best do my job
It is important that Lebanon City police officers have input into 3 6 33 58
new policies and processes developed by the department
This department’s leadership does a good job of including patrol 17 57 26 —
officers, as well as higher ranking officers, in the development
of department policies, rules, and regulations
It is clear to me that the Administration appreciates the job I am 11 28 53 8
doing
cent) of officers agree or strongly agree comes to the use of discretion, although
with that statement. there is some disagreement with that state-
ment (40 per cent either disagree or
Officers’ perceptions of issues related
strongly disagree).
to the use of street-level discretion
Officers are split almost down the middle
The next series of questions in the LCPD when it comes to the issue of the Chief and
study dealt with the use of street-level higher-ranking officers making it clear to
discretion by officers. Ten questions were officers about what the policies are regard-
included to measure several aspects of
ing street-level decision-making. However,
discretion, including whether they believe
a majority believe that the citizens they
their department is doing a good job of
police want the law applied to all individ-
making sure all officers know what the
uals in an equitable and fair manner (81 per
rules are when it comes to on-the-job
discretion. The 10 questions, as shown in cent agree or strongly agree with that state-
Table 5, utilise the same four-point Likert ment). As shown in Table 5, 87 per cent
scale: ‘strongly disagree,’ ‘disagree,’ ‘agree,’ agree that ‘LCPD officers do a good job of
and ‘strongly agree’. The first question in applying the law to all individuals equally
Table 5 asks officers to agree or disagree and fairly’.
with the statement, ‘LCPD officers use Officers also report that they think it
discretion that is consistent with the public would be a good idea for the department to
interest’. Fifty-six per cent of respondents provide training and educational program-
report that they agree with that statement ming that deals specifically with the use of
with another 17 per cent saying that they on-the-job discretion, but disagree much
strongly agree. They report further that more strongly that the department should
they believe officers are influenced by self- develop more policies that address this par-
interest goals, personal norms, etc when it ticular issue.
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When it comes to the use of sanctions As shown in Table 5, one final question
and/or incentives as a technique to influ- that deals with police discretion was wor-
ence the way officers use their discretion on ded, ‘Even in situations that appear to be
the job, 60 per cent of officers believe that similar in nature, officers should be allowed
it would be a good idea to sanction those to make up their own minds about how to
officers who ‘cross the line’ or go too far handle the public, with no set of guidelines
with the use of discretion. However, only from the Chief or our superior officers’.
thirty two per cent agree or strongly agree Although 62 per cent of officers disagree or
that providing incentives as a means of strongly disagree with that statement, there
influencing street-level discretion would be was some agreement, with 27 per cent
a good idea. responding that they agree and 12 per cent
Table 5: Officers’ perceptions of issues related to the use of street-level discretion
Question: For each of the following statements, please tell me whether you strongly disagree, disagree, agree,
or strongly agree.
Percentages reported
SD D A SA
LCPD officers use discretion that is consistent with the public — 28 56 17
interest
Officers are influenced by self-interest goals, personal norms, 6 34 49 11
and personal prejudices in their use of discretion
Our Chief and higher ranking officers make it clear to us what 11 42 47 —
the policies and/or rules are about the use of street-level
decision-making
I believe that the citizens of Lebanon want the law applied to 3 17 53 28
all individuals in an equitable and fair manner
Lebanon City police officers do a good job of applying the law — 14 56 31
to all individuals equally and fairly
It is important for my department to provide training and 6 19 47 29
educational programming that deals specifically with the use
of on-the-job discretion
It would be helpful for officers to have more policies or rules 17 56 25 3
dealing with the use of discretion
It would be a good idea for my department to apply sanctions 9 31 54 6
to those officers who go too far with the use of discretion
It would be a good idea for the LCPD to use incentives as a 26 43 29 3
means of directing and influencing street-level discretion
Even in situations that appear to be similar in nature, officers 15 47 27 12
should be allowed to make up their own minds about how to
handle the public, with no set of guidelines from the Chief
or our superior officers
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responding that they strongly agree. Clearly, the officer to immediately take charge of
some officers within the LCPD believe that any situation in which the police are
when faced with a decision while carrying involved’. It should be pointed out, how-
out their duties as a police officer, they ever, that a little over one-third (37 per
should be able to decide on the appropriate cent) of officers either agree or strongly
course of action without needing to refer agree with that statement.
back to what the departmental policies are A little over half (58 per cent) of LCPD
about the particular situation. officers disagree that persons with mental
Overall, the data in Table 5 reveal that illness are ‘dangerous and must be handled
most of the LCPD officers agree with the quickly’. In contrast, 42 per cent either
need for policies that deal with the use of agree or strongly agree with that particular
street-level discretion and would like addi- statement. About six in ten officers believe
tional training in this particular area. How-
they are qualified to manage persons with
ever, they also believe, that they are treating
mental illness, but it appears that most do
all citizens in an equitable manner, and that
not believe that the department provides
they are presently using discretion that is
adequate guidelines to officers about man-
consistent with what the public expects.
aging this population (see Table 6).
Perceptions of policing persons with
mental illness Officers’ views toward various roles
often associated with policing
Four questions were included in the police
survey to measure officers’ perceptions of As a prelude to a series of questions that
policing persons with mental illness. As address community vs traditional policing,
shown in Table 6, 63 per cent of respon- and that are reported on below, seven ques-
dents either disagree or strongly disagree tions were included in the officer survey to
with the statement that ‘the best way to get a clearer picture of how respondents
manage persons with mental illness is for view certain tasks that police are sometimes
Table 6: Officers’ perceptions of policing persons with mental illness
Question: For each of the following statements, please tell me whether you strongly disagree, disagree, agree,
or strongly agree.
Percentages reported
SD D A SA
The best way to manage persons with mental illness is for the 6 57 34 3
officer to immediately take charge of any situation in which
the police are involved
Persons with mental illness are dangerous and must be handled — 58 31 11
quickly
I feel I am qualified to manage persons with mental illness — 33 64 3
This department provides adequate guidelines to officers about 9 63 29 —
how to manage persons with mental illness
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called upon to handle. Those seven ques- items (53 per cent and 56 per cent,
tions, as shown in Table 7, used a dichot- respectively).
omous response category of 1 = Favour and
2 = Oppose. Officers appear to strongly Attitudes toward two models of
favour such tasks as ‘working more with the policing: community vs traditional
local community to ensure that children Generally speaking, the tasks discussed
have a safe place to play’, ‘doing more above are considered to be, as previously
toward educating the public about the role mentioned, part of a community policing
of the police’, working with the commu- model, as are the issues captured by the four
nity to ‘prevent crime’, and putting more ‘community policing’ questions listed in
police officers on the street. There also Table 8. A very different kind of model is
appears to be strong support among officers found under the rubric of ‘traditional polic-
for providing home security checks for cit- ing,’ and is often characterised using the
izens who request them. Less support is four questions listed in Table 8. These ques-
found for ‘handling calls that involve social tions about these two very different models
or personal problems where no actual crime of policing are included here to measure the
is involved’ and for ‘assigning the same extent to which officers of the LCPD
officers to particular neighbourhoods on a embrace the community policing model
routine basis’. It should be noted, however, over the traditional model.
that over half of the officers who partici- It is clear from the data in Table 8 that
pated in the study favour these last two LCPD officers more readily agree with the
Table 7: Respondents’ opinions about the various roles often associated with policing
in general
Question: Thinking about the various roles of police officers, please indicate whether you favour or oppose each of the
following as being important goals of this department.
Percentages reported
Favour Oppose
Working with the community to prevent crime 88 —
Increasing the number of officers patrolling the streets 88 —
Assigning the same officers to particular neighbourhoods on a 56 44
routine basis
Working more with the local community to ensure that 94 6
children have a safe place to play
Doing home security checks for citizens who request them 69 31
Doing more toward educating the public about the role of the 97 3
police through speaking at local community events or in the
local schools
Handle calls that involve social or personal problems where no 53 47
actual crime is involved
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Table 8: Attitudes toward two models of policing: Community vs Traditional
Question: For each of the following statements, please tell me whether you strongly disagree, disagree, agree,
or strongly agree.
Percentages reported
SD D A SA
Community policing
The police are one department among many public service — 3 47 50
agencies responsible for improving the quality of life in our
local neighbourhoods
The role of the police is to problem-solve 3 17 53 28
The highest priority of the police should be whatever problems 3 34 43 20
disturb the community the most
The essential nature of police accountability is to community — 29 60 11
needs
Traditional policing
Police should deal with service calls when there is no real police 28 58 14 —
work to do
Response times should be used as a primary measure of police 31 53 17 —
effectiveness
The focus of the police should be on incidents where police are 3 61 31 6
clearly needed, not day-to-day citizen concerns
The primary measure of police efficiency should be arrest rates 67 31 3 —
community policing questions than they do effectiveness. Further, only three per cent of
with the traditional policing questions. officers agree that the primary measure of
Overwhelmingly, officers see the police police efficiency should be arrest rates. Still,
department as just one in many public there does seem to be some support for the
agencies responsible for improving the qual- statement, ‘The focus of the police should
ity of life for local neighbourhoods, agree be on incidents where police are clearly
that the role of the police is to ‘problem- needed, not day-to-day citizen concerns’.
solve,’ believe that the ‘highest priority of
the police should be whatever problems Officers’ perceptions of how they
disturb the community the most’, and that believe local citizens perceive them
the ‘essential nature of police accountability Two questions were included in the study
is to community needs’. to measure how officers of the LCPD per-
Only 14 per cent of officers agree that ceive local citizens’ perceptions of them.
police ‘should deal with service calls when The first question was: ‘I believe that the
there is no real police work to do’, and only citizens of Lebanon would say that I do a
17 per cent agree that response times should good job of policing the local community
be used as the primary measure of police and that I do so in a fair and professional
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manner’. No officers disagreed with this Officers’ reports of their job as
statement. Two-thirds (67 per cent) of offi- challenging and rewarding and
cers said that they agreed with this state- perceptions of job-related stress
ment, and the remaining officers who One question in the police survey was
responded to this question said they included to measure the extent to which
strongly agreed with it (33 per cent). officers of LCPD view their job as chal-
The second question was worded, ‘I do lenging and rewarding. Only eight per
not believe that local citizens have an appre- cent of respondents reported that they
ciation for the work that I do’. Exactly half disagreed with the statement, ‘Overall, I
of respondents disagreed with that state- find my job challenging and rewarding’.
ment, and fifty per cent agreed with it. Fifty-six per cent of officers agreed with
that statement, and 36 per cent strongly
Perceptions of probable cause agreed with it.
requirements and use of force The prompt for the job-related stress
It has been said by some that certain restric- question was, ‘Job-related stress is a major
tions placed on police actually inhibit the concern in police work. How often would
ability of police to do their jobs in an you say you feel that you are under stress
efficient manner. Two such restrictions deal that is job-related?’ The response categories
directly with the establishment of probable were ‘never,’ ‘not very often,’ or ‘very often’.
cause incident to a lawful search and/or Only three per cent of respondents said that
arrest, and the use of force by officers on they ‘never’ experience stress on the job,
the citizens they police. Clearly, a majority with a little over half (56 per cent) respond-
of LCPD officers see the need for having ing ‘not very often’. Forty-two per cent of
the probable cause requirement prior to LCPD officers said that they experienced
job-related stress ‘very often’.
searching citizens. When posed in the fol-
In order better to understand job-related
lowing manner: ‘Police officers in this
stressors for LCPD officers, an open-ended
department would be more effective if they
question on the questionnaire allowed offi-
didn’t have to worry about probable cause
cers to list the top three issues that caused
requirements for searching citizens’, 78 per
them stress on the job in the order of
cent of officers responded ‘strongly disagree’
severity. An examination of the responses to
or ‘disagree’ to that statement. It should be
this question indicates that officers are con-
noted, however, that 23 per cent of officers cerned the most about lack of sufficient
either ‘agreed’ or ‘strongly agreed’ with that ‘manpower’ to handle the volume of work
statement. being handled by their department. The
On the issue of use of force by LCPD second issue that surfaces as a major stressor
officers, and when asked, ‘If officers in this of LCPD officers is that of scheduling asso-
department had fewer restrictions on their ciated with ‘shift work’. Several officers
use of force, many of the serious crime reported that balancing shift work with
problems in some neighbourhoods would their family life is a major stressor for
be greatly reduced’, well over a majority of them.
respondents either ‘strongly disagreed’ or Also appearing in the section on job-
‘disagreed’ (83 per cent). As was found for related stressors are:
the probable cause question, however, some
officers did in fact agree with that statement ● numerous unfounded complaints by
(11 per cent agreeing and six per cent citizens;
strongly agreeing). ● fear of being sued;
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● fear of being seriously injured; they were not asked in the survey itself. As
● problems associated with department was indicated by responses to the question
supervisors and/or administration (no on job-related stress, it was reiterated here
clear or sometimes conflicting directives, that there is a need adequately to staff the
no input into department policies and department. Equally important to officers
procedures, lack of response in addressing of the LCPD is a need for the administra-
known problems, etc); and tion to ensure that promotions are merit
● issues related to negative comments based as opposed to politically based, and
about people from different racial/ethnic that issues of discrimination be handled in
backgrounds. an appropriate manner. Additionally, offi-
cers say that there is a great deal of ‘jealousy’
Additional items listed as stress-related, in the department, and suggest the develop-
although much less frequently than those ment of more departmental ‘incentives’.
already mentioned, are: low officer morale, They also say, however, that ‘Generally, this
making the right decision in a ‘split second’ is a good department’.
and fear of losing benefits or being
demoted.
Related to the question about job- SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS
related stress was an open-ended question A starting-point for examining the major
that asked officers, ‘What type of training findings here is developing an explanation
do you feel would be needed to assist the for why a little over half of LCPD officers
department’s officers in doing their jobs rate the department as ‘poor’ or ‘fair’.
better?’. Responses to this question varied, Throughout the preceding description of
but major themes included those dealing officers’ perceptions, attitudes and/or opin-
with cultural issues or the issue of dealing ions, there is some indication that of pri-
with special populations. For example, sev- mary concern to them is equality of
eral officers said they would like to see treatment. They appear overwhelmingly to
Spanish classes offered by the department perceive that promotion and other job-
as well as ‘ethnic sensitivity’ training. Oth- related merit and/or reward systems are
ers said that they would like to see not handled in an equitable manner, nor
training implemented that deals with per- do they believe that disciplinary proce-
sons with mental illness. Several officers dures, when called for, are handled in the
called for training in certain areas of same way for all officers. In addition, offi-
policing such as courtroom preparation cers seem to perceive that they are not
and presentation of evidence, interviewing getting clear directives from the administra-
techniques, report writing, and tactical tion (in the use of on-the-job discretion,
defence training. Officers also pointed out for example, or that line officers do not
a need for training in community rela- have sufficient input into the policies
tions, problem-orientated policing and the under which they must operate. In sum,
need for a more ‘humanistic’ approach to LCPD officers see problems in the depart-
policing local communities. ment that might best be described as ‘inter-
nal stressors’, influencing officers’
In their own words perceptions of the working climate within
At the end of the questionnaire, officers of the department in a negative direction.
the LCPD were given an opportunity to Although other negative factors might
write in any comments that they might influence LCPD’s officers’ perceptions of
have and to indicate matters about which the working climate within the department
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itself, it will be recalled that only nine per community policing and less so with those
cent of officers who rated the working associated with traditional policing.
climate of the LCPD as either ‘poor’ or Although a handful of officers appear
‘fair’ said that they did so for reasons not willing to ‘push the boundaries’ somewhat
associated with the administration. when it comes to the use of street-level
Equally, however, LCPD officers report discretion, the use of force, and probable
having a positive rapport with their cause requirements for search and seisure,
immediate supervisors, and they generally they are very low in number. The depart-
believe the administration appreciates the ment might somehow recognise the work
job that they are doing. A large majority of of those officers — the majority — who
officers say that they find their jobs probably, if behavioural theories are correct,
rewarding and challenging, and that they act on these positive beliefs about policing
believe that local citizens think they are and the responsibilities that go along with
doing a good job of policing local neigh- them. At the same time, the department
bourhoods. This positive outlook toward might wish to watch closely those officers
the job they are doing, coupled with the who, more likely than not, will cross the
fact that they believe that the administra- boundaries of departmental and constitu-
tion appreciates them and that citizens tional policies when faced with a sensitive,
would say they are doing a good job, street-level incident.
probably is associated with the fact that Other areas that could be addressed by
approximately 59 per cent of officers the LCPD deal with staffing and training
report not experiencing job-related stress. issues. Ness (1991) found that recruits often
Overall, this paints a picture of a depart- express that more comprehensive training is
ment that is somewhat confident in the job
needed than that they receive in the acad-
it is doing, but with some room for
emy. Further, it comes through loud and
improvement when it comes to enhancing
clear from respondents that the department
the working climate in which its officers
is understaffed, and that this shortage of
function, and primarily through increased
personnel is perceived as putting officers at
interaction with the department’s
risk in the street. This could also negatively
administration.
influence officers’ overall perceptions of
As mentioned previously throughout this
document, community-policing calls for a their working environment.
joint effort between the police and the Hand in hand with a shortage of person-
citizens to whom they provide assistance. As nel, officers of the LCPD appear to believe
was seen in the citizen survey, citizens that they are under-trained and in several
appear willing to work with LCPD officers areas. They believe, for example, that train-
to achieve a community policing model, ing is needed to ensure the proper handling
and they believe that many of the tasks of persons with mental illness, and they
associated with community policing are believe strongly that special training is nee-
already being carried out by their local ded in the area of ‘improving community
police officers. As indicated by responses to relations’, especially as related to differences
several questions in the police survey, offi- across racial/ethnic boundaries.
cers themselves are equally willing to work
with the local community to achieve a
more problem-solving and interactive POLICY IMPLICATIONS
model of policing. It is clear that they agree That officers themselves are calling for
more with the major concepts embedded in improved relations in the community,
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especially among primarily Hispanic indi- the stressors or issues associated with the
viduals, is a positive sign. In the citizen overall working climate in larger and
survey, it was found that, generally speak- medium police departments are much the
ing, citizens hold positive views of their same in the smaller department.
local police, with significant differences We recognise the limitations of this study
between Hispanics and non-Hispanics. associated with such a small sample size
Furthermore, citizens reported being will- (n = 36). Even with a response rate well
ing to work with their local police to above what can be hoped for in survey
effect positive change in their neighbour- research (77 per cent), such low numbers
hoods. The fact that both officers and do not allow us to generalise beyond the
citizens appear willing to work together sample, and we were not able to examine
should provide key stakeholders and policy the data in more statistically robust manner.
makers with a clear mandate to move This is likely to be the case, however, when
forward in this critical area. In order for researchers explore the working environ-
the LCPD fully to implement a commu- ment of such small police departments. We
nity policing model, however, efforts will argue here that such research fills a gap in
have to be undertaken to ensure that it is the literature, while at the same time, pro-
sufficiently resourced, that its officers are viding police practitioners with important
adequately trained in critical areas of polic- information to be used in the development
ing, and that the internal climate in which and implementation of polices and proce-
officers work is one that operates equitably dures. More, rather than fewer, studies of
and fairly. this sort are important, so that accumulated
Officers need to know that, in the citizen evidence can begin to take shape and influ-
survey, their constituents evaluated them ence the field of policing to the extent that
positively, thus breaking down their percep- studies of larger departments have. This is
tions that ‘citizens do not fully appreciate especially important given the fact, as noted
the job that I do’. In turn, citizens need to above, a large majority of police officers
know that their officers are overwhelmingly work in the smaller police departments.
supportive of community policing, and
interested in providing them with services
that go beyond the mere ‘order mainte- NOTE
nance’ type of assistance. (1) This article was originally presented at
Lebanon City has done much to facilitate the 2004 Annual Meeting of the Acad-
in local citizens a generally positive percep- emy of Criminal Justice Sciences, Las
tion of their neighbourhoods and of those Vegas, NV.
who police them. At the same time, the
LCPD Administration is providing its offi-
cers with much that is positive when it REFERENCES
comes to a working climate that allows Bittner, E. (1967). Police discretion in
officers to do their job in a meaningful and emergency apprehension of mentally ill
persons. Social Problems, 14, 278–292.
satisfying way. However, there is room for
Black, D. (1980). The Manners and Customs of
improvement in both areas and the findings the Police. NY: Academic Press.
from the Lebanon City Crime and Public Borum, R., Deane, M., & Steadman, H.
Safety study should provide local stake- (1998). Police perspectives on responding to
holders with a baseline measure of what mentally ill people in crisis. Behavioral
those areas might be. Further, the findings Sciences and the Law, 16, 393–405.
from the present study suggest that many of Chambers, C. L. (2001). Police discretion in a
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