NCJ Number
100605
Journal
Canadian Police College Journal Volume: 9 Issue: 3 Dated: (1985) Pages: 295-341
Date Published
1985
Length
27 pages
Annotation
Using data from two studies of Canadian police forces conducted in 1980 and 1981-82, this paper examines the extent to which physical and verbal abuses of authority are inherent in and supported by police ideology.
Abstract
General characteristics of incidents in which verbal or physical excesses occur include a disturbance where order is difficult to restore, an indifferent or hostile audience, an aggressive and verbally abusive main actor, resistance, and drunkenness. The context of the police ideology is a result of common culture, training, interactions among police, and the police role. In addition to a commitment to a broad-based police role and a concern for the maintenance of police authority and control, the police ideology includes beliefs that society and courts are too lenient, that mutual support and noninterference is necessary among line officers, and that top management does not understand the contingencies of the operational role. These beliefs are coupled with a strong action orientation and trust in its validity, limited tolerance of deviance, rigid definitions of right and wrong, and a tendency to simplify events and to stereotype as hostile those who question police authority. This ideology can contribute to abuses in situations involving challenges to police authority and in those where officers believe justice will not be served by working within the institutional framework. This relationship between abuses and ideology has implications for training, management, and supervision. Appendixes provide detailed findings and tabular data from the attitudinal study. 5 references.