Personal and Professional Attributes of Community and Traditional Police Officers Impacting Order Maintenance and Exercised Degrees of Control: Phenomenology

Author

Rickey L. Mitchell, Lynn University

Date of Award

12-16-2005

Document Type

Dissertation

Granting Institution

Lynn University

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PHD)

Degree Program

Global Leadership - with a specialization in Educational Leadership

Department

College of Education

First Advisor

David Moffett

Second Advisor

Joan Scialli

Third Advisor

Adam Kosnitzky

Abstract

Community policing differs from traditional police work. It is a response to public and social pressures on policing to fill needed roles of prevention, as opposed to crime fighting. Literature stresses that community policing efforts incorporate the attitudes and perceptions of law enforcement officers, suggesting that certain learned and naturally-occurring personality traits among officers predispose success or failure in community policing efforts. To further the exploration of community policing, there is a need to qualify the personal and professional attributes of police officers and their impact on order maintenance and exercised degrees of control.

A qualitative, phenomenology study conducted on 16 officers (8 traditional police officers and 8 community police officers) was designed to critically determine the behavioral traits and attitudes that are involved in policing. The subjects participated through an open-ended interview questionnaire resulting in case vignettes. The qualitative data collected from each interview were analyzed through documented transcriptions for comparisons within and across assignments (traditional policing and community policing). Personal and professional attributes of the participants were compared with self-reported degrees of exercised control.

Results suggest that the process relating to the relationship between the participants' perceived personal and professional attributes and use of order maintenance and exercised degrees of control follow a similar form and a similar set of predictors for both traditional police officers and community police officers. The findings recommend the value that community policing plays in helping to establish strong relationships between the law enforcement officers and the community members.

Recommended Citation

Mitchell, R. L. (2005). Personal and Professional Attributes of Community and Traditional Police Officers Impacting Order Maintenance and Exercised Degrees of Control: Phenomenology [Doctoral dissertation, Lynn University]. SPIRAL. https://spiral.lynn.edu/etds/293