TY - JOUR
T1 - Police Perceptions of Problem-oriented Policing and Evidence-based Policing
T2 - Evidence from England and Wales
AU - Bullock, Karen
AU - Sidebottom, Aiden
AU - Armitage, Rachel
AU - Ashby, Matthew P.J.
AU - Clemmow, Caitlin
AU - Kirby, Stuart
AU - Laycock, Gloria
AU - Tilley, Nick
N1 - Funding Information:
The work was funded by the Office for the South Yorkshire Police and Crime Commissioner.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.
PY - 2022/9/1
Y1 - 2022/9/1
N2 - The history of policing is littered with reform programmes, which aim to improve effectiveness, efficiency and legitimacy. Problem-oriented policing (POP) and evidence-based policing (EBP) are two popular and enduring reform efforts, both of which have generated significant researcher and practitioner attention. There are important similarities between POP and EBP: both approaches provide a framework intended to improve the outcomes of policing. There are also key differences, however, in terms of their main objectives, standards of evidence and units of analysis. Despite both approaches being widely advocated and implemented, presently little is known about police practitioner understanding of the relationship between POP and EBP, both in principle and in practice. To address this gap, this paper draws on survey (n = 4,141) and interview (n = 86) data collected from 19 police forces in England and Wales in 2019 to explore police practitioners’ views on the relationship between POP and EBP, and the extent to which these two approaches inform contemporary police practices. Our findings indicate that respondents generally viewed the two approaches as complementary and important frameworks for orienting police work. However, respondents also drew attention to how the two approaches are not always connected organisationally nor in the minds of police personnel. In addition, challenges were identified in the application of both approaches in practice. Our results suggest that more needs to be done to maximise the potential of POP and EBP, both separately and synergistically. The article concludes by suggesting some ways in which this might be achieved.
AB - The history of policing is littered with reform programmes, which aim to improve effectiveness, efficiency and legitimacy. Problem-oriented policing (POP) and evidence-based policing (EBP) are two popular and enduring reform efforts, both of which have generated significant researcher and practitioner attention. There are important similarities between POP and EBP: both approaches provide a framework intended to improve the outcomes of policing. There are also key differences, however, in terms of their main objectives, standards of evidence and units of analysis. Despite both approaches being widely advocated and implemented, presently little is known about police practitioner understanding of the relationship between POP and EBP, both in principle and in practice. To address this gap, this paper draws on survey (n = 4,141) and interview (n = 86) data collected from 19 police forces in England and Wales in 2019 to explore police practitioners’ views on the relationship between POP and EBP, and the extent to which these two approaches inform contemporary police practices. Our findings indicate that respondents generally viewed the two approaches as complementary and important frameworks for orienting police work. However, respondents also drew attention to how the two approaches are not always connected organisationally nor in the minds of police personnel. In addition, challenges were identified in the application of both approaches in practice. Our results suggest that more needs to be done to maximise the potential of POP and EBP, both separately and synergistically. The article concludes by suggesting some ways in which this might be achieved.
KW - Problem oriented policing
KW - Evidence based policing
KW - Crime prevention
KW - Policing
KW - crime prevention
KW - Evidence-based policing
KW - problem-oriented policing
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85126376320&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1080/15614263.2022.2046568
DO - 10.1080/15614263.2022.2046568
M3 - Article
VL - 23
SP - 775
EP - 791
JO - Police Practice and Research
JF - Police Practice and Research
SN - 1561-4263
IS - 6
ER -