The paper provides a conceptual argument for the importance of understanding victim decision making in responding to cases of domestic abuse. It applies core elements of decision-making theory to ...illustrate how victims may undergo different forms of thinking, could be affected by bias, consider gain and loss differently, and suffer from decision inertia. Suggestions are provided on how this perspective could be used in practice to deliver a victim empowerment approach in policing. However, the paper also expresses the importance of the theory’s limitations, especially around external validity, and suggests that research across various disciplines is critical to determine whether the perspective could be placed onto an empirical footing.
Adaptive Flexibility Boulton, Laura; Cole, Jon
Journal of cognitive engineering and decision making,
09/2016, Letnik:
10, Številka:
3
Journal Article
Identifying the cognitive processes underlying tactical decision making is vital for two purposes: (a) reducing risk through improved training and (b) facilitating the public’s attitudes toward the ...legitimacy of the police and criminal justice system. Despite this, very little research has been conducted into British police decision making involving the use of firearms. This study begins to address this gap by examining the impact that expertise has on British police’s use-of-force decisions during armed confrontations. To do so, the tactical decision-making processes of 12 expert specialized firearms officers and 11 novice authorized firearms officers during armed confrontations were compared through cognitive task analysis methods. Data were coded via categories derived from theory and patterns inductively emergent within the data. The results found expert specialized firearms officers to be more flexible in adaptive responding to situational changes, while novice authorized firearms officers reported a more sequential and linear process of tactical decision making. In identifying the key features of expertise within this environment (“adaptive flexibility”), this study has theoretical and practical implications for the acceleration of authorized firearms officers’ expertise acquisition to bridge the existing gap resulting from a lack of available qualified operational force commanders.
Purpose
This paper aims to examine the “engage” pilot project and related processes for identifying individuals vulnerable to becoming involved in serious and organised crime groups (OCGs).
...Design/methodology/approach
In this, a six-stage process developed in the five pilot sites to guide interventions is described. The project identified 18 individuals who have confirmed low level involvement in OCGs based in 5 areas of Greater Manchester by combining risk factors and the connecting of records held by law enforcement agencies.
Findings
Key risk factors found to be associated with the 18 individuals identified are described in relation to literature and discussed in terms of future intervention possibilities. A brief description of the key findings of the evaluation of the pilot project is also included.
Originality/value
Together these findings are discussed to explore the challenges of preventative interventions tailored towards young people already involved in criminality and offers recommendations for future programmes in this field.
Existing policing policy offers a rational approach to decision‐making with minimal reference to human judgement within child death investigations. This study adopted a mixed methodology to capture ...decisional processes of 26 serving detective inspectors and detective sergeants whilst responding to an immersive scenario which simulated the first hours of a Sudden and Unexpected Death in Children (SUDC) investigation. Participants were presented with four decision points, during which they were asked to choose from decision options while reflecting upon personal and situational factors influencing that decision. Thematic analysis of responses found that investigators disclosed ‘anxiety’ and ‘uncertainty’ throughout their decision‐making during the scenario. In addition, there was no evidence of investigators utilising the models formally advocated within policing literature to make their decisions and assessments. As a result, it is suggested that further improvements are made regarding investigative decision‐making models within operational policing where ‘anxiety’ and ‘uncertainty’ is heightened.
Diverting young men from gangs: a qualitative evaluation Boulton, Laura Jane; Phythian, Rebecca; Kirby, Stuart
Policing : an international journal of police strategies & management,
10/2019, Letnik:
42, Številka:
5
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Odprti dostop
Purpose
Serious organised crime (SOC) costs the UK billions of pounds every year and is associated with significant negative health, social and well-being outcomes. The purpose of this paper is to ...evaluate whether young people can be diverted from involvement in SOC using preventive intervention approaches.
Design/methodology/approach
A qualitative thematic analysis was conducted on data collected from semi-structured interviews with practitioners involved in a six-month intervention which specifically aimed to divert “at risk” young people away from SOC involvement.
Findings
Themes arising from the analysis are: risk and vulnerability factors associated with young people involved in organised crime; what worked well during this intervention; what outcomes, both hard and soft, were generated; as well as, the specific challenges to the success of preventive programmes’ success.
Practical implications
Overall, the study highlights the problematic nature of diverting “at risk” youths from SOC and provides recommendations for future preventive intervention work in the field of SOC. Specifically, it suggests that longer-term interventions, targeted at younger children, may generate better behavioural outcomes if they focus on building trusting relationships with credible support workers (i.e. have lived experience of SOC).
Originality/value
With a growing body of evidence suggesting that young people are being increasingly exploited for organised criminal purposes, an approach which prevents involvement in SOC makes theoretical and economic sense. However, little research has empirically tested its utility in practice. This study seeks to address this gap.
Responding to reports of missing children is an everyday occurrence in many police agencies, and a significant source of police demand. In England, there is a statutory requirement that all those ...under the age of 18 be offered a return home interview (RHI) within 72 hours of returning from a missing episode. The main purpose of an RHI is to better understand the reasons why a young person went missing and, where necessary, put measures in place to safeguard that young person and reduce the likelihood of them going missing again. Although widely practiced in England, there is currently limited research on the conduct of and information elicited from RHIs. In an attempt to help fill this research gap, this article reports the findings of an exploratory analysis of 113 RHIs carried out in one police force area in England. Findings indicate that 42% (n = 48) of the sampled RHIs occurred within the required 72-hour timeframe. Absent or incomplete information was common, particularly in relation to the presence and types of vulnerabilities associated with missing children. In terms of those interviewed, nearly half of the interviewees did not consider themselves to be missing. Moreover, many exhibited a high prevalence of mental health concerns, conflict at home and drug and alcohol use. The implications of the findings for safeguarding children and preventing missing incidents are discussed.
Investigating reports of missing children is a major source of demand for the police in the UK. Repeat disappearances are common, can indicate underlying vulnerabilities and have been linked with ...various forms of exploitation and abuse. Inspired by research on repeat victimisation, this paper examines the prevalence and temporal patterns of repeat missing episodes by children, as well as the characteristics of those involved. Using data on all missing children incidents recorded by one UK police service in 2015 (n = 3352), we find that: (a) 75% of missing incidents involving children were repeats, i.e. attributed to children who had already been reported missing in 2015; (b) a small proportion of repeatedly missing children (n = 59; 4%) accounted for almost a third of all missing children incidents (n = 952, 28%); (c) over half of all first repeat disappearances occurred within four weeks of an initial police recorded missing episode; and (d) children recorded as missing ten times or more over the one year study period were significantly more likely than those recorded missing once to be teenagers, in the care system or to have drug and/or alcohol dependencies. We conclude by discussing the implications of our findings for future research and the prevention of repeat disappearances by children.
Traditional UK policing relies on Peelian principles of policing by consent in which public views of police legitimacy are crucial. This study used a mixed methods survey design to explore the impact ...of the Coronavirus Act 2020 on public perceptions towards the police in one UK force region. The findings indicate that self-reported compliance with COVID-19 measures was significantly related to trust in local policing. Qualitative responses indicate that police enforcement of Covid regulations was believed to infringe on individual liberties while losing focus on ‘real crime’ and decreasing trust in police.
Abstract
A growing body of international evidence reflects the increasing recognition of evidence-based policing (EBP) and the co-production of research, yet the extent of which such research is ...being implemented remains unclear. This study seeks to explore the efficacy of EBP in relation to practical implementation issues and assess the impact research is having on practice, both within and external to a specific Constabulary. Twenty-nine research studies, conducted in association with the Constabulary, were examined using a mixed-method approach. Of the total projects, 52% of projects were found to have generated a change to practice or policy. The key features of research that were associated with impact included: (i) mixed-method data collection, (ii) transferability, and (iii) increased dissemination that engaged practitioner and academic audiences. Practically, these findings suggest that EBP research projects can be designed and disseminated in a way that increases the likelihood of implementing the findings to change practice.
Whilst studies refer to the community impact of Organized Crime (OC), no survey currently exists to examine the views of those citizens who reside in areas where Organized Crime Groups (OCGs) ...proliferate. 431 questionnaires from households co-existing in high density OCGs areas were analysed in relation to: a) demographic information; b) views on the community and the police; and c) how they expected other residents to react to illegal incidents. Overall respondents thought the average citizen would refuse to intervene in 10% - 48% of illegal incidents, with the specific case influencing
whether
and
how
they would respond. The analysis then compared three communities who lived in high density OCG areas with a control community (
n
= 343). The ‘OCG’ communities were more likely to report low collective efficacy and were generally least likely to expect their neighbours to confront a crime in action. Conversely, whilst the control group showed higher levels of collective efficacy and expected the average resident to be more likely in confronting illegal behaviour, this trend did not extend to street drug dealing and serious crime associated with OC. The study discusses the unreported intimidation associated with OCGs and the challenges of policing hostile environments.
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