Police professionalismrequires that today's police officers have a great deal of specialized knowledge and that they adhere to the standards and ethics set out by the profession

Question

Define and analyze some of the examples the author uses to demonstrate how to have a more professional police officer and police department.

Answer 1

Police professionalism involves the increasing formalization of police work and the accompanying rise in public acceptance of the police. Police ethics refer to the special responsibility to adhere to moral duty and obligation that is inherent in police work. Modern police education generally involves training in subjects as varied as self-defense, human relations, firearms and weapons, communications, legal aspects of policing, patrol, criminal investigations, administration, report writing, ethics, computers and information systems, and cultural diversity. Today, police organizations consider education an important recruiting criterion, and they actively recruit new officers from two- and four-year colleges and universities, technical institutions, and professional organizations. The national commission report stressed the setting of high standards for police recruits and recommended a strong emphasis on minority recruitment, and elimination of the requirement that new officers live in the area they were hired to serve.