Book Description

"This paper suggests that the past model of police professionalism has been updated as a result of technology and federal funding. Sklansky explains that 1960s police professionalism was not about tactics, such as random patrol, but rather about the governing mindset behind policies. By the early 1980s, this professional policing model was discredited, giving birth to community policing, which also focused more on ideas and policy and less on tactics. Community policing was seen to have shortcomings, such as being vague and not reducing serious crime. Today, professional policing is mounting a comeback. Community policing, however, is still valuable. Although the community policing model is incomplete, a model of "advanced community policing" could address unanswered specifics about the nature of community policing that would help law enforcement agencies, police researchers, and the public resist the persistent pull of police professionalism. Governing Science is one of a series of papers that are being published as a result of the second "Executive Session on Policing and Public Safety," a collaboration of NIJ and Harvard Kennedy School's Program in Criminal Justice Policy and Management."--Publisher's website.