- Institute of Criminology
Cambridge University
Ross E Hendy
Monash University, School of Social Sciences, Faculty Member
- Criminology, Criminology (Social Sciences), Policing Studies, Police and Policing, Police use of force, Police Reform, and 23 moreSocio Legal, Social History, Police Science, Strategic Studies, Schools of Criminology, Police, Arms Control and Disarmament, Police Legitimacy, New Zealand Police Armed, Policing by Consent, Human Rights, International Security, Security Studies, Intelligence Studies, Legitimacy and Authority, Conflict Resolution, Routinely Unarmed Police, Interpersonal conflict resolution, Policing, Conflict and Conflict Resolution, Firearms, Anthropology of Police & Policing, and Spying and Intelligenceedit
- Ross Hendy is a Lecturer in Criminology at the School of Social Sciences, Monash University. He was formerly a Sergea... moreRoss Hendy is a Lecturer in Criminology at the School of Social Sciences, Monash University. He was formerly a Sergeant with the New Zealand Police. His doctoral studies were completed in 2018 at the Institute of Criminology, University of Cambridge, UK.edit
Research Interests:
In this study, we compare the rates of New Zealand (NZ) and England and Wales (EW) police shootings from 1970 to 2020. Taking this long view lessens the stochastic effect of shootings over shorter time periods and reveals that the... more
In this study, we compare the rates of New Zealand (NZ) and England and Wales (EW) police shootings from 1970 to 2020. Taking this long view lessens the stochastic effect of shootings over shorter time periods and reveals that the frequency of police shootings has increased in both jurisdictions over this period, despite police not being routinely armed with firearms. In EW, police shootings have increased from an average of 1.4 persons shot per annum for the decade ending 1980 to 4.3 per annum for the decade ending 2020. Similarly, NZ has seen an increase of 0.3 persons shot per annum (decade ending 1980) to 3.7 per annum (decade ending 2020). When comparing the rate of persons shot per million population in the past two decades, NZ has doubled the rate of shootings from 0.360 per million (2001-10) to 0.783 per million (2011-20). Such an increase has not occurred in EW as the number of persons shot has decreased from 0.080 per million (2001-10) to 0.074 per million (2011-20). We highlight the time-series trajectories with trend breakpoints at points of known policy implementations.
Research Interests:
Purpose This article explores officer use of suspicion before informal police-citizen encounters as a method to further understand police officer decision-making. There is a body of research focused on officer decision-making before... more
Purpose This article explores officer use of suspicion before informal police-citizen encounters as a method to further understand police officer decision-making. There is a body of research focused on officer decision-making before formal “stop and search” encounters, yet, while the more informal “stop and chat” encounters are ubiquitous, they are a comparatively under-researched part of policework. Design/methodology/approach The research takes an ethnographic approach to explore police decision-making. It used participant observation (800 h over 93 patrol shifts) of front-line first response officers from New Zealand (n = 45) and South Australia (n = 48). Field observations were complemented with informal discussion in the field and 27 semi-structured interviews. Findings It reveals that officers applied three situational “tests” to assess the circumstances or actions observed before initiating an informal encounter. Officers then weighed up whether the circumstances were harmful...
Research Interests:
ABSTRACT Officers from the Norwegian police were routinely armed with firearms from July 2014 to February 2016 in response to a terror threat. This paper explores the experiences of a sample of officers (N = 16) who were routinely armed... more
ABSTRACT Officers from the Norwegian police were routinely armed with firearms from July 2014 to February 2016 in response to a terror threat. This paper explores the experiences of a sample of officers (N = 16) who were routinely armed during this period. The research took a mixed-methods approach using semi-structured interviews one month before the policy was rescinded. Two key themes emerged. First, officers believed that being routinely armed was advantageous for routine police activities. Officers described that tactical planning had improved as it was no longer necessary to wait for permission to respond with a firearm. The associated tactical freedom triggered an increase in self-belief in their effectiveness and efficiency. Second, officers believed that although officers had observed some behavioural changes when interacting with citizens, over time, citizens became acclimatised to the presence of firearms. These findings provide new empirical evidence relevant to the debate surrounding the implications of permanently arming a routinely unarmed police force.
Research Interests:
ABSTRACT This article introduces the author’s recent study on the ‘strategic impact’ of routinely arming the New Zealand Police and discusses how two significant research findings are consistent with published theory. First, the utility... more
ABSTRACT This article introduces the author’s recent study on the ‘strategic impact’ of routinely arming the New Zealand Police and discusses how two significant research findings are consistent with published theory. First, the utility of taking a binary, black and white approach when analysing the ‘routinely armed versus routinely unarmed’ debate, is limited in terms of considering police officer behaviour. This is because police departmental policies shape police officer risk-taking and behaviour to a considerable degree. Second, despite departmental policies, the routine armament of a routinely unarmed police force, say for health and safety reasons, may be counterproductive; such a change exposes police officers to increased risks. Both findings come from an analysis of Scandinavian police forces. The author’s study was primarily concerned with the police forces of Norway and Sweden; however, comparisons were made, at times, within a wider Scandinavian context.
Research Interests:
This article introduces the author’s recent study on the ‘strategic impact ’ of routinely arming the New Zealand Police and discusses how two significant research findings are consistent with published theory. First, the utility of taking... more
This article introduces the author’s recent study on the ‘strategic impact ’ of routinely arming the New Zealand Police and discusses how two significant research findings are consistent with published theory. First, the utility of taking a binary, black, and white approach when analysing the ‘routinely armed versus routinely unarmed’ debate, is limited in terms of considering police officer behaviour. This is because police departmental policies shape police officer risk-taking and behaviour to a considerable degree. Second, despite departmental policies, the routine armament of a routinely unarmed police force, say for health and safety reasons, may be counterproductive; such a change exposes police officers to increased risks. Both findings come from an analysis of Scandinavian police forces. The author’s study was primarily concerned with the police forces of Norway and Sweden; however, comparisons were made, at times, within a wider Scandinavian context.
Between 2009 and 2016, New Zealand Police experienced a disproportionate increase in lower-priority mental health-related calls. This exploratory study uses content analysis to identify characteristics of these calls, including reasons... more
Between 2009 and 2016, New Zealand Police experienced a disproportionate increase in lower-priority mental health-related calls. This exploratory study uses content analysis to identify characteristics of these calls, including reasons for calling police, advice and actions undertaken by communications centres staff, and actions undertaken by frontline officers. Four important findings emerge. First, there has been a significant increase in the proportion of mental health-related calls that did not involve reporting of an offence or emergency (increased from 48% in 2010 to 57% in 2016). Second, there was a significant increase in calls that were initiated by the person who appeared to be experiencing mental illness and distress during the time of the call (increased from 53% to 62%). Third, the way communication centres staff and frontline officers responded to mental health-related calls also changed over time. There was an increased tendency of communications centre staff advising the callers to call back if the situation escalates or if they require further assistance (which increased from 14% to 24%). Fourth, among the events attended by a police unit, there was an increase in the proportion of events where a frontline officer contacted a mental health agency (which increased from 6% of attended events to 10%). Moreover, transportation to a police station decreased (21.7% to 11%) while there were increases in the transportation of a person’s home (2.7% to 6%). Transportation to a mental health facility averaged at 24.9% over the period.
Research Interests:
Internationally police agencies reported steady increases in mental health-related demand for service. This increase in demand has significant implications on the resourcing and training needs of both frontline and call centre staff.... more
Internationally police agencies reported steady increases in mental health-related demand for service. This increase in demand has significant implications on the resourcing and training needs of both frontline and call centre staff. Mental disorders comprise a broad range of psychological conditions and therefore are difficult to define concisely. In police's operational environment, frontline and contact centre staff are often required to make decisions quickly based on the limited information they have; this practice is not unique to mental health-related events. The process of coding an event could be based on perception, prior contact with police, and/or other information available at the time. Due to the ambiguous definition of 'mental health' in the police context, it is important to understand the characteristics of events categorised as 'mental health' to enable adequate deployment and practice of police. To do this, this analysis examines the characteristics of mental health-related calls received by New Zealand Police between 2009 and 2016; these calls were assigned the code 'mental health' at event closure. The results indicated a 9% increase in this call type per year on average. The urgency of these calls for police attendance was approximated using two measures: (1) priority of calls at closure and (2) result code (i.e. follow-up actions). Both measures indicated a disproportional increase in lower-priority calls. This finding may suggest a general change in service demand and expectation of police's role in mental health, and have implications on police's service model and cross-agency collaboration to support people with mental disorder.
Research Interests:
Between 2009 and 2016, New Zealand Police experienced a disproportionate increase in lower-priority mental health-related calls. This exploratory study uses content analysis to identify characteristics of these calls, including reasons... more
Between 2009 and 2016, New Zealand Police experienced a disproportionate increase in lower-priority mental health-related calls. This exploratory study uses content analysis to identify characteristics of these calls, including reasons for calling police, advice and actions undertaken by communications centres staff, and actions undertaken by frontline officers. Four important findings emerge. First, there has been a significant increase in the proportion of mental health-related calls that did not involve reporting of an offence or emergency (increased from 48% in 2010 to 57% in 2016). Second, there was a significant increase in calls that were initiated by the person who appeared to be experiencing mental illness and distress during the time of the call (increased from 53% to 62%). Third, the way communication centres staff and frontline officers responded to mental health-related calls also changed over time. There was an increased tendency of communications centre staff advising the callers to call back if the situation escalates or if they require further assistance (which increased from 14% to 24%). Fourth, among the events attended by a police unit, there was an increase in the proportion of events where a frontline officer contacted a mental health agency (which increased from 6% of attended events to 10%). Moreover, transportation to a police station decreased (21.7% to 11%) while there were increases in the transportation of a person’s home (2.7% to 6%). Transportation to a mental health facility averaged at 24.9% over the period.
Research Interests:
Purpose This article explores officer use of suspicion before informal police-citizen encounters as a method to further understand police officer decision-making. There is a body of research focused on officer decision-making before... more
Purpose
This article explores officer use of suspicion before informal police-citizen encounters as a method to further understand police officer decision-making. There is a body of research focused on officer decision-making before formal “stop and search” encounters, yet, while the more informal “stop and chat” encounters are ubiquitous, they are a comparatively under-researched part of policework.
Design/methodology/approach
The research takes an ethnographic approach to explore police decision-making. It used participant observation (800 h over 93 patrol shifts) of front-line first response officers from New Zealand (n = 45) and South Australia (n = 48). Field observations were complemented with informal discussion in the field and 27 semi-structured interviews.
Findings
It reveals that officers applied three situational “tests” to assess the circumstances or actions observed before initiating an informal encounter. Officers then weighed up whether the circumstances were harmful, contrary to law, or socially acceptable to determine the necessity of initiating a police-citizen encounter. This process is conceived as suspicioning: deciding whether circumstances appear prima facie suspicious, how an officer goes about collecting more information to corroborate suspicion to ultimately inform a course of action.
Originality/value
The findings present a new perspective to understanding how and why police officers decide to initiate encounters with members of the public. Moreover, as the first ethnographic cross-national research of officers from New Zealand and South Australia, it provides a rare comparative glimpse of Antipodean policing.
This article explores officer use of suspicion before informal police-citizen encounters as a method to further understand police officer decision-making. There is a body of research focused on officer decision-making before formal “stop and search” encounters, yet, while the more informal “stop and chat” encounters are ubiquitous, they are a comparatively under-researched part of policework.
Design/methodology/approach
The research takes an ethnographic approach to explore police decision-making. It used participant observation (800 h over 93 patrol shifts) of front-line first response officers from New Zealand (n = 45) and South Australia (n = 48). Field observations were complemented with informal discussion in the field and 27 semi-structured interviews.
Findings
It reveals that officers applied three situational “tests” to assess the circumstances or actions observed before initiating an informal encounter. Officers then weighed up whether the circumstances were harmful, contrary to law, or socially acceptable to determine the necessity of initiating a police-citizen encounter. This process is conceived as suspicioning: deciding whether circumstances appear prima facie suspicious, how an officer goes about collecting more information to corroborate suspicion to ultimately inform a course of action.
Originality/value
The findings present a new perspective to understanding how and why police officers decide to initiate encounters with members of the public. Moreover, as the first ethnographic cross-national research of officers from New Zealand and South Australia, it provides a rare comparative glimpse of Antipodean policing.
Research Interests:
In recent times, the interest in evidence-based policing research at practitioner management level has increased. A number of academic programmes have been established in higher education to train police managers in applied criminology.... more
In recent times, the interest in evidence-based policing research at practitioner management level has increased. A number of academic programmes have been established in higher education to train police managers in applied criminology. However, there is a lack of literature for police officer practitioner researchers (POPR) who might undertake qualitative research, especially research projects that examine police behaviour. In this paper, it is suggested that police officers undertaking qualitative research need to learn to ‘switch off their police role’ and ‘switch on their researcher role’. The author’s insights are drawn from his own experience of qualitative fieldwork working with police officers from New Zealand Police and South Australian Police.
Research Interests:
Officers from the Norwegian police were routinely armed with firearms from July 2014 to February 2016 in response to a terror threat. This paper explores the experiences of a sample of officers (N = 16) who were routinely armed during... more
Officers from the Norwegian police were routinely armed with firearms from July 2014 to February 2016 in response to a terror threat. This paper explores the experiences of a sample of officers (N = 16) who were routinely armed during this period. The research took a mixed-methods approach using semi-structured interviews one month before the policy was rescinded. Two key themes emerged. First, officers believed that being routinely armed was advantageous for routine police activities. Officers described that tactical planning had improved as it was no longer necessary to wait for permission to respond with a firearm. The associated tactical freedom triggered an increase in self-belief in their effectiveness and efficiency. Second, officers believed that although officers had observed some behavioural changes when interacting with citizens, over time, citizens became acclimatised to the presence of firearms. These findings provide new empirical evidence relevant to the debate surrounding the implications of permanently arming a routinely unarmed police force. ARTICLE HISTORY
Research Interests:
Internationally police agencies reported steady increases in mental health-related demand for service. This increase in demand has significant implications on the resourcing and training needs of both frontline and call centre staff.... more
Internationally police agencies reported steady increases in mental health-related demand for service. This increase in demand has significant implications on the resourcing and training needs of both frontline and call centre staff. Mental disorders comprise a broad range of psychological conditions and therefore are difficult to define concisely. In police's operational environment, frontline and contact centre staff are often required to make decisions quickly based on the limited information they have; this practice is not unique to mental health-related events. The process of coding an event could be based on perception, prior contact with police, and/or other information available at the time. Due to the ambiguous definition of 'mental health' in the police context, it is important to understand the characteristics of events categorised as 'mental health' to enable adequate deployment and practice of police. To do this, this analysis examines the characteristics of mental health-related calls received by New Zealand Police between 2009 and 2016; these calls were assigned the code 'mental health' at event closure. The results indicated a 9% increase in this call type per year on average. The urgency of these calls for police attendance was approximated using two measures: (1) priority of calls at closure and (2) result code (i.e. follow-up actions). Both measures indicated a disproportional increase in lower-priority calls. This finding may suggest a general change in service demand and expectation of police's role in mental health, and have implications on police's service model and cross-agency collaboration to support people with mental disorder.
Research Interests:
Evidence-based policing is rapidly becoming adopted by policing agencies among policing jurisdictions. Many academic programmes have been established in higher education to train police managers in applied criminology. However, there is a... more
Evidence-based policing is rapidly becoming adopted by policing agencies among policing jurisdictions. Many academic programmes have been established in higher education to train police managers in applied criminology. However, there is a lack of literature for police officer practitioner researchers (POPR) who might undertake qualitative research, especially research projects that examine police behaviour. This paper reflects on the changing role of the practitioner-researcher and suggests that police officers undertaking qualitative research need to learn to ‘switch off their police role’ and ‘switch on their researcher role’. The author’s insights are drawn from his own experience of qualitative fieldwork working with police officers from New Zealand Police and South Australian Police.
Research Interests:
This article introduces the author’s recent study on the ‘strategic impact’ of routinely arming the New Zealand Police and discusses how two significant research findings are consistent with published theory. First, the utility of taking... more
This article introduces the author’s recent study on the ‘strategic impact’ of routinely arming the New Zealand Police and discusses how two significant research findings are consistent with published theory. First, the utility of taking a binary, black and white approach when analysing the ‘routinely armed versus routinely unarmed’ debate, is limited in terms of considering police officer behaviour. This is because police departmental policies shape police officer risk-taking and behaviour to a considerable degree. Second, despite departmental policies, the routine armament of a routinely unarmed police force, say for health and safety reasons, may be counterproductive; such a change exposes police officers to increased risks. Both findings come from an analysis of Scandinavian police forces. The author’s study was primarily concerned with the police forces of Norway and Sweden; however, comparisons were made, at times, within a wider Scandinavian context.
Research Interests:
This chapter provides a critical review of research supporting what works in the policing of family violence. A problem occurs when researchers limit the concept of family harm, or equivalently, the actual range of interactions when... more
This chapter provides a critical review of research supporting what works in the policing of family violence. A problem occurs when researchers limit the concept of family harm, or equivalently, the actual range of interactions when policing family violence, they also diminish the applicability of their findings. The history of key research starting with Sherman and Berk (1984) is offered to illustrate the problem. An alternative approach uses a new Big Data paradigm, and this is presented with several evaluations undertaken in New Zealand. These evaluations use all the available data, consider large populations and are augmented with a Crime Harm Index. New Zealand’s leading-edge approach to policing family harm is deconstructed into its components and reviewed to reveal that successful practice runs ahead of strong research evidence. The 16 parts of New Zealand’s approach are placed on an array to illustrate that the impacts of interventions are multi-dimensional with impacts for both offenders and victims. When a multi-dimensional approach is considered, successful practices are those that enhance victim agency and avoid formal, structured decision-making. The array is offered to practitioners to assess their own interventions. The Big Data approach is recommended as a wayfinder to determine successful practice.
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Many extol the virtue of 'routinely unarmed' policing. Indeed, the ability to practise without reliance on a demonstrable police power epitomises the romance of the 'policing by consent' model-where police... more
Many extol the virtue of 'routinely unarmed' policing. Indeed, the ability to practise without reliance on a demonstrable police power epitomises the romance of the 'policing by consent' model-where police officers are effective operators who can convince the hardiest person to acquiesce without recourse to the explicit threat of firearms. Yet New Zealand and Norway are two jurisdictions that while appearing to be 'routinely unarmed', are, in fact, more armed than officers in other routinely armed jurisdictions. This chapter sets out how the response model for these jurisdictions does indeed rely on armed officers on continuous patrol. It looks at recent comparative research of routinely armed and unarmed officer practice. And, in doing so the chapter sets out to challenge the logic and rhetoric of 'routinely unarmed' policing in modern democratic states. This myth sits in stark contrast to the practical realities of frontline policing.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Many extol the virtue of 'routinely unarmed' policing. Indeed, the ability to practise without reliance on a demonstrable police power epitomises the romance of the 'policing by consent' model-where police officers are effective operators... more
Many extol the virtue of 'routinely unarmed' policing. Indeed, the ability to practise without reliance on a demonstrable police power epitomises the romance of the 'policing by consent' model-where police officers are effective operators who can convince the hardiest person to acquiesce without recourse to the explicit threat of firearms. Yet New Zealand and Norway are two jurisdictions that while appearing to be 'routinely unarmed', are, in fact, more armed than officers in other routinely armed jurisdictions. This chapter sets out how the response model for these jurisdictions does indeed rely on armed officers on continuous patrol. It looks at recent comparative research of routinely armed and unarmed officer practice. And, in doing so the chapter sets out to challenge the logic and rhetoric of 'routinely unarmed' policing in modern democratic states. This myth sits in stark contrast to the practical realities of frontline policing.
Research Interests:
Recently there have been calls to change the New Zealand Police firearm policy so that police officers are routinely armed at all times. It is believed that an armed police force interacts in society differently from an unarmed police... more
Recently there have been calls to change the New Zealand Police firearm policy so that police officers are routinely armed at all times. It is believed that an armed police force interacts in society differently from an unarmed police force and little is known about how the change to an armed force will affect the relationship between the police and the public. The purpose of this study is to identify these issues by studying comparable jurisdictions and to predict how they might alter the strategic relationship between New Zealand society and police. The police of England and Wales, Norway and Sweden were compared. Prominent themes emerged from the study. For the police-public relationship to remain functional, the police must maintain a high level of police legitimacy. Legitimacy can be affected by the manner in which the police use firearms. The use of firearms by police officers is influenced by departmental policy and their independent perception of the degree of risk they face. The main conclusions drawn from this research were that it was not likely that a barrier would emerge between the police and public nor was there likely to be a significant impact on the police’s ability to police by consent if the police become routinely armed. However routinely arming the New Zealand police might lead to a reduction in police safety as officers may be more inclined to engage in dangerous situations."
Research Interests:
This research has been supported by the generous funding of studentships and research grants from the following sources: Studentships: - Dawes Trust Bursary - Tennant Studentship - Wakefield Scholarship Grants: - Institute of Criminology... more
This research has been supported by the generous funding of studentships and research grants from the following sources: Studentships: - Dawes Trust Bursary - Tennant Studentship - Wakefield Scholarship Grants: - Institute of Criminology - New Zealand Police Study Grant - Scandinavian Studies Fund (University of Cambridge) - Smuts Memorial Fund (University of Cambridge) - Tennant Fund (University of Cambridge) - University of Cambridge Field Work Fund
Research Interests: Peace and Conflict Studies, New Zealand Studies, Political Science, Police, Policing Studies, and 11 moreConflict Resolution, Comparative Policing, Use of Force, Agnews General Strain Theory, Policing, Police and Policing, New Zealand, South Australia, Commonwealth and Postcolonial Literature, Police use of force, and Policing and Police Studies
Research Interests:
This research takes a cross-national approach to explore how police officers attempt conflict resolution in their day-to-day activities. Using comparisons of the behaviour of routinely armed officers from South Australia and routinely... more
This research takes a cross-national approach to explore how police officers attempt conflict resolution in their day-to-day activities. Using comparisons of the behaviour of routinely armed officers from South Australia and routinely unarmed officers from New Zealand, this thesis chronicles a research journey which culminates with a new theoretical framework to explain police-citizen encounters.
The research took a grounded theory approach and employed a mixed methods design. Quantitative data revealed that officers from South Australia used verbal and physical control behaviours more frequently and for a higher proportion of time during encounters than during the encounters observed in New Zealand. There were no clear explanations for the differences, although there were variations in law and the profile of event-types between the research sites. The qualitative enquiry found that officers from both jurisdictions followed a similar diagnostic and treatment procedure during police-citizen encounters. Moreover, officers in both jurisdictions experienced conflict from procedural frustrations or goal blockages arising from interaction with citizens.
Findings provided the context for the construction of a substantive ‘procedural conflict’ theory. This theory (1) illustrates how procedural conflict can cause a strain for officers, (2) posits that officers take corrective actions to overcome the conflict using control behaviour, and (3) explains that while officers may use force to regulate police-citizen encounters, other behaviour for resolving conflict during encounters is more common. Accordingly, procedural conflict theory provides a new framework for the explanation of the police use of force. Further theoretical propositions about police-citizen interaction are set out in the final chapter and further research to test the validity of the theory is proposed.
The research took a grounded theory approach and employed a mixed methods design. Quantitative data revealed that officers from South Australia used verbal and physical control behaviours more frequently and for a higher proportion of time during encounters than during the encounters observed in New Zealand. There were no clear explanations for the differences, although there were variations in law and the profile of event-types between the research sites. The qualitative enquiry found that officers from both jurisdictions followed a similar diagnostic and treatment procedure during police-citizen encounters. Moreover, officers in both jurisdictions experienced conflict from procedural frustrations or goal blockages arising from interaction with citizens.
Findings provided the context for the construction of a substantive ‘procedural conflict’ theory. This theory (1) illustrates how procedural conflict can cause a strain for officers, (2) posits that officers take corrective actions to overcome the conflict using control behaviour, and (3) explains that while officers may use force to regulate police-citizen encounters, other behaviour for resolving conflict during encounters is more common. Accordingly, procedural conflict theory provides a new framework for the explanation of the police use of force. Further theoretical propositions about police-citizen interaction are set out in the final chapter and further research to test the validity of the theory is proposed.
Research Interests:
It is believed that an armed police force interacts in society differently from an unarmed police force Little is known about how the change to an armed force will affect the relationship between the police and the public. This study... more
It is believed that an armed police force interacts in society differently from an unarmed police force Little is known about how the change to an armed force will affect the relationship between the police and the public. This study identifies these issues by studying the police of England and Wales, Norway and Sweden. Prominent themes emerged including the importance maintaining a high level of police legitimacy. The use of firearms by police is influenced by departmental policy and their independent perception of the degree of risk they face. The main conclusions drawn from this research were that it was not likely a barrier would emerge between the police and public nor was there likely to be a significant impact on the police’s ability to police by consent. However routinely arming might lead to a reduction in police safety as officers may be more inclined to engage in dangerous situations.
Research Interests:
It is believed that an armed police force interacts in society differently from an unarmed police force Little is known about how the change to an armed force will affect the relationship between the police and the public. This study... more
It is believed that an armed police force interacts in society differently from an unarmed police force Little is known about how the change to an armed force will affect the relationship between the police and the public. This study identifies these issues by studying the police of England and Wales, Norway and Sweden. Prominent themes emerged including the importance maintaining a high level of police legitimacy. The use of firearms by police is influenced by departmental policy and their independent perception of the degree of risk they face. The main conclusions drawn from this research were that it was not likely a barrier would emerge between the police and public nor was there likely to be a significant impact on the police’s ability to police by consent. However routinely arming might lead to a reduction in police safety as officers may be more inclined to engage in dangerous situations.
Research Interests:
This summary focuses on the data associated with the author's doctoral thesis: Procedural conflict and conflict resolution: a cross-national study of police officers from New Zealand and South Australia. It summarises the key research... more
This summary focuses on the data associated with the author's doctoral thesis: Procedural conflict and conflict resolution: a cross-national study of police officers from New Zealand and South Australia. It summarises the key research findings and recommendations. Further details of the relevant research literature, research methodology and detailed analysis of quantitative and qualitative data that support the findings herein may be found in the thesis. Quantitative data revealed that officers from South Australia used verbal and physical control behaviours more frequently and for a higher proportion of time during encounters than did officers from New Zealand. There were no clear explanations for the differences, although there were variations in law and the profile of event-types between the research sites. The qualitative enquiry found that officers from both jurisdictions followed a similar diagnostic and treatment procedure during police-citizen encounters. Moreover, officers in both jurisdictions experienced conflict from procedural frustrations or goal blockages when interacting with citizens.
Research Interests:
A recent cross-national study of police officers from New Zealand and South Australia revealed the importance of procedural-orientated goals during police-citizen interaction during police-citizen encounters. Procedural conflict theory... more
A recent cross-national study of police officers from New Zealand and South Australia revealed the importance of procedural-orientated goals during police-citizen interaction during police-citizen encounters. Procedural conflict theory (PCT) recasts the understanding of police officer behaviour during routine police-citizen encounters. It explores goal-driven officer behaviour to show how officers and citizens can affect successful encounter outcomes (cf. Alpert & Dunham 2004). The PCT framework weaves together general systems theory (Sykes & Brent 1983) with general strain theory (Agnew 2006), detailing how officers follow procedural scripts to determine the type and necessity of police-led interventions to be delivered during encounters. Any procedural obstructions (i.e. such as confusion or resistance) result in ‘procedural conflict’. Officers respond using corrective actions—control behaviours—to overcome obstructions. PCT draws together a framework to explain coercion and control behaviours, including verbal control, physical force, excessive use of force and police violence. In doing so, PCT addresses the lack of formal theory in the policing context (Klockars 1996; Ivkovic 2014) and advances the understanding of police conflict resolution, coercive-control and excessive police use of force.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Reflections of a practitioner-reserarcher examining operational behaviour of police officers
Research Interests:
For the most part, street crime occurs when participants are in a heightened emotional or physical state. Other types of crime such as dishonesty, theft, or shoplifting, result in the offender deceiving the victim. Effective police... more
For the most part, street crime occurs when participants are in a heightened emotional or physical state. Other types of crime such as dishonesty, theft, or shoplifting, result in the offender deceiving the victim. Effective police officers require substantial training (in the classroom and the field) to detect deception and develop their ‘policing street-craft’. How, then, does the participant observer learn their ‘policing street craft’ in order to accurately interpret and understand the environment they are studying? The prac-ademic (practitioner-academic) holds an advantage in this regard. This presentation will discuss some of the advantages and disadvantages of practitioner-led research.
Research Interests:
The aim of this presentation is to explore the extant literature on police conflict resolution tactics from a practitioner’s perspective. Empirical research on police conflict resolution tactics is limited, despite a large amount of... more
The aim of this presentation is to explore the extant literature on police conflict resolution tactics from a practitioner’s perspective. Empirical research on police conflict resolution tactics is limited, despite a large amount of literature on police ‘use of force’. The literature will be discussed in the following ways:
• Understanding the transactional nature of police-citizen encounters and associated theories
• Discussing empirical research of police tactics utilised when resolving conflict
• Exploring the difference between conflict resolution and use of force
• Exploring methodological and ethical issues in the study of police-citizen encounters
For example, two empirical studies of police conflict tactics include a scenario-based questionnaire to English and Australian police officers (Wilson & Gross, 1994), and a study of Norwegian police officers (Abrahamsen & Strype, 2010). While both studies yield interesting results, their utility is questionable. The questionnaire method only allows for the examination of a singular police tactic; one chosen by officers on the basis of their interpretation of the likely behaviour of the subject. This approach does not allow for variation or unpredictability of citizen behaviour; the test relies on the officer’s perception of citizen behaviour. As a result the unpredictability and dynamics prevalent in police-citizen encounters, remains unaccounted.
• Understanding the transactional nature of police-citizen encounters and associated theories
• Discussing empirical research of police tactics utilised when resolving conflict
• Exploring the difference between conflict resolution and use of force
• Exploring methodological and ethical issues in the study of police-citizen encounters
For example, two empirical studies of police conflict tactics include a scenario-based questionnaire to English and Australian police officers (Wilson & Gross, 1994), and a study of Norwegian police officers (Abrahamsen & Strype, 2010). While both studies yield interesting results, their utility is questionable. The questionnaire method only allows for the examination of a singular police tactic; one chosen by officers on the basis of their interpretation of the likely behaviour of the subject. This approach does not allow for variation or unpredictability of citizen behaviour; the test relies on the officer’s perception of citizen behaviour. As a result the unpredictability and dynamics prevalent in police-citizen encounters, remains unaccounted.
Research Interests:
It is believed that an armed police force interacts in society differently from an unarmed police force. Little is known about how the change to an armed force will affect the relationship between the police and the public. This study... more
It is believed that an armed police force interacts in society differently from an unarmed police force. Little is known about how the change to an armed force will affect the relationship between the police and the public. This study identifies these issues by studying the police of England and Wales, Norway and Sweden. Prominent themes emerge, including the importance of maintaining a high level of police legitimacy. The use of firearms by police is influenced by departmental policy and their independent perception of the degree of risk they face. The main conclusions drawn from this research are that it was not likely a barrier would emerge between the police and public nor was there likely to be a significant impact on the police's ability to police by consent. However, routinely arming might lead to a reduction in police safety as officers may be more inclined to engage in dangerous situations.
Research Interests:
When I arrived in Oslo recently I had forgotten that the doors to hotel guest rooms open outwards towards you. My oversight became abundantly clear when I encountered the door to my room; it did not open for me. My initial thoughts were... more
When I arrived in Oslo recently I had forgotten that the doors to hotel guest rooms open outwards towards you. My oversight became abundantly clear when I encountered the door to my room; it did not open for me. My initial thoughts were that either the door was faulty, the lock was broken, the key card was not correctly encoded, or that I had arrived at the wrong room. A moment later, after a brief inspection of the door fittings, I realised that I had unwittingly become, once again, the nitwit in Gary Larson’s cartoon Midvale School for the Gifted (see below). [Follow the link to read the full blog entry]
Research Interests:
In the aftermath of the 22 February 2011 Christchurch earthquake (where approximately 185 people died) police officers from Australia deployed into Christchurch to assist New Zealand Police. Unlike their Australian counterparts, New... more
In the aftermath of the 22 February 2011 Christchurch earthquake (where approximately 185 people died) police officers from Australia deployed into Christchurch to assist New Zealand Police. Unlike their Australian counterparts, New Zealand Police are not routinely armed; they do not wear a firearm on their duty belt as a matter of course. As such, the Australian police officers had to 'disarm' during their deployment in New Zealand. There is anecdotal evidence that the 'disarmed' officers were initially fearful of operating unarmed, but over time they became accustomed to it, and observed that New Zealand police officers dealt with situations in a different manner because of their unarmed status. There is further anecdotal evidence that suggests some of the Australian officers, when returning from New Zealand, took time to readjust to policing in their 're-armed' state. While these anecdotes poses several questions—the most curious of which is to ask how two...
Research Interests:
Reflections of a practitioner-researcher examining the operational behaviour of police officers
Research Interests:
Poster presentation at the Institute of Criminology (Cambridge) Criminology Day