Police Officer and Civilian Staff Receptivity to Research and Evidence-Based Policing in the UK: Providing a Contextual Understanding through Qualitative Interviews

Lumsden, Karen

Abstract

This paper provides a contextual understanding of police officer and civilian staff receptivity to research and evidence-based policing (EBP) in UK through presentation of findings from qualitative interviews. It focuses on: 1) how officers defined the concept of EBP; 2) the context driving these definitions (including political pressures, professionalization, and the rise of police–academic collaborations); 3) what research means to police officers in terms of ‘hierarchies’ and a ‘ladder of evidence’; and 4) how success and ‘what works’ is measured (including academic versus practitioner definitions). It is argued that future studies of police officer and civilian staff receptivity to research and EBP are crucial as receptivity influences the application of research and willingness to incorporate an evidence-base into policing practice. Data are presented from 15 semi-structured interviews with police officers and civilian staff from police forces in the UK.

Citation

Lumsden, K. (2017). Police Officer and Civilian Staff Receptivity to Research and Evidence-Based Policing in the UK: Providing a Contextual Understanding through Qualitative Interviews. Policing, 11(2), 157–167. https://doi.org/10.1093/police/paw036

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Aug 15, 2016
• Online Publication Date: Sep 4, 2016
• Publication Date: 2017-06
• Deposit Date: Oct 10, 2019
• Journal: Policing
• Print ISSN: 1752-4512
• Electronic ISSN: 1752-4520
• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 11
• Issue: 2
• Pages: 157–167
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/police/paw036
• Keywords: Law
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/2796901
• Publisher URL: https://academic.oup.com/policing/article/11/2/157/2897248