What is police cynicism, and how does it operate?
What will be an ideal response?
Cynicism, which relates to a police officer’s view of humanity, may occur because so many of the people with whom the police deal are offenders and because officers regularly observe what they believe to be miscarriages of justice, such as improper or lenient court decisions, perjury, plea bargaining, and so on. On the positive side, cynicism helps make officers more callous, so that they can observe things that would sicken or horrify the average citizen without becoming mentally debilitated.
According to Niederhoffer, police cynicism varies throughout an officer’s career. Typical recruits begin their career without a trace of cynicism, but it spikes dramatically immediately after they leave the academy, probably because this is when they confront the reality of the streets, and also when they may lose friends. The worst aspects of the job are often reinforced by cynical veteran officers. Between about the second and the sixth year of service, the cynicism level continues to increase, but at a slower rate as recruits begin to adapt to the occupation and the people they deal with on a daily basis. At about the mid-career point, about eight to thirteen years of service, the cynicism level begins to decline, possibly because the officer has accepted the job, has been promoted, earns a decent salary and benefits, and realizes that he or she is about halfway to retirement. Toward the end of the career, the degree of cynicism levels off; for many officers, this is a period of coasting toward retirement.
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a. True b. False
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What will be an ideal response?
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