Abstract
This thesis explores the role of the police officer in community-oriented policing from the perspective of police officers, an area of inquiry that has been virtually ignored in previous research on community policing. Various theories of community and urban development; bureaucracy, rationality, and organizational management; and police-officer socialization and the police subculture suggest some of the more significant social forces that influence the community-policing officer's role. To determine how these forces shape the ways in which community-policing officers view their role, a survey questionnaire was distributed to 92 police officers in police departments of three small Ohio communities, each of which has implemented community-oriented policing. Additionally, interviews were conducted with several police officers and administrators in each department to assess the ways in which issues of community, organizational management, and socialization mold the community-policing officer's role. Findings indicate that these issues are of great importance in shaping the role of the community-policing officer. Moreover, findings suggest that the community-policing officer's role is not constant, but shifts according to variations in how issues of community, organizational management, and socialization are manifested across police agencies. Directions for future research are suggested. Specifically, further research on the role of the community-policing officer should draw from a more heterogeneous sample of police agencies and police officers than the one used in this study. Further, future research should aim to identify additional issues in community-oriented policing that may influence the role of the community-policing officer .
Advisor
Blair, Robert
Department
Sociology and Anthropology
Recommended Citation
Clayton, Robert B., "Reparing Broken Windows: The Role of the Police Officer in Community-Oriented Policing" (1999). Senior Independent Study Theses. Paper 5686.
https://openworks.wooster.edu/independentstudy/5686
Publication Date
1999
Degree Granted
Bachelor of Arts
Document Type
Senior Independent Study Thesis
© Copyright 1999 Robert B. Clayton