This is the first course guide that has been developed for students of policing. It identifies the core themes and additional source material, providing an essential overview for students and a reference point for use throughout their studies.
The Policing Course Companion is designed to complement and work alongside existing literature. It provides:
" Easy access to the key themes in policing
" Helpful summaries of the approach taken by the main course textbooks
" Guidance on the essential study skills required to pass the course
" Help with developing critical thinking
" Taking it Further sections that suggest how readers can extent their thinking beyond the "received wisdom"
" Pointers to success in course exams and written assessment exercises
The SAGE Course Companion in Policing is much more than a revision guide for undergraduates; it is an essential tool that will help readers take their course understanding to new levels and help them achieve success in their undergraduate course.
John Grieve is a former Director of Intelligence for the Metropolitan Police, where he also held a number of other senior roles. He is now Chair of the John Grieve Centre for Policing and Community Safety and Emeritus Professor at London Metropolitan University.
Clive Harfield is a former police Inspector and is now the Deputy Director of the John Grieve Centre for Policing and Community Safety, London Metropolitan University.
Allyson MacVean is Founder and Director of the John Grieve Centre for Policing and Community Safety, London Metropolitan University.
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Yes, you can access Policing by John Grieve,Clive Harfield,Allyson MacVean in PDF and/or ePUB format, as well as other popular books in Social Sciences & Criminology. We have over one million books available in our catalogue for you to explore.
In recent years the study of policing has attracted an increasing amount of interest from a variety of academic perspectives: criminology, sociology, social policy and public administration, politics and governance, criminal justice, social history, law and human rights. There are wider tangential interests. Policing as a concept of social control may be of interest to philosophy students. The contribution of policing to foreign policy may be of interest to students of international relations. Press or dramatic representations of policing may well be of interest to media and cultural studies students. Policing can be studied as a sub-set of any of these disciplines or in its own right. Offered at an increasing number of higher and further education institutions, the relatively recent academic specialism of police studies has yet to define a common and traditional curriculum and the permutations of academic modules around policing-related subjects are numerous. That variety and this broad academic community are reflected in this volume, which aims to provide the reader with a general introduction to various key aspects of police studies that may feature in any of the curricula for the above disciplines.
A volume this size cannot hope to discuss in detail the complexities of these different key aspects, but it does draw attention to the breadth of the subject and it will highlight for students of one discipline how other disciplines might be engaged. For those specifically studying policing, this book aims to provide both a broad introduction and a framework for study revision. Its features, explained below, are intended to facilitate this and the book is structured accordingly. Following this introduction, Part Two outlines key aspects that are likely to feature in any policing curriculum. Part Three, based upon the work of David McIlroy (for whose assistance the primary authors are very grateful), presents guidance on core academic skills. In Part Four, additional study resources are presented.
Good practical policing demands a multitude of skills and an open mind, whether the primary purpose is the investigation of crime or the preservation of the sovereign’s peace. It often requires the ability to multi-task. It is perfectly possible, for example, for students to focus on police powers purely from the perspective of criminal law and procedure, but such a focused and forensic legal study will not provide the wider understanding to be gained when the social context for the use of police powers is studied – the role of officer discretion and the socio-political and cultural factors that influence such discretion, for instance. Nor will the social consequences and implications of any given policing action, initiative or philosophy necessarily be fully understood without an appreciation both of the powers at police disposal and of the available alternatives to the use of such powers, particularly when crime detection (although a priority for politicians) represents a minority of the demands placed upon the police by the public.
In that vein, those undertaking police studies must adopt a multidisciplinary approach in order to achieve academic success. Policing is a skilled profession. No less professionalism is required of those who would study it.
1.2
using this book
Who should use this book? Students at any stage of their undergraduate or postgraduate careers in any of the disciplines already mentioned (or indeed others), who need a broad overview of any or all of the aspects of policing introduced here. Skim reading will provide a general introduction. Focusing on individual sections, particularly the features incorporated within the sections, will help the reader develop her or his understanding of that particular topic.
This general introductory volume is a supplement to the syllabuses and specialist textbooks that lecturers and tutors will recommend to their students. For the undergraduate, it can provide an initial overview and can then be used as a reference point or revision aid throughout the undergraduate career. For the postgraduate Masters student, it also provides a useful overview, while for the postgraduate researcher it may provide guidance to related topics and illustrate how and where other disciplines are engaged.
What this book will not do is give the reader everything he or she needs in order to pass assignments or exams. It is a study aid, not a substitute for study.
1.3
introducing the features
Being a successful student necessitates learning how to think and write theoretically and analytically. Key points and ideas must be identified, understood and clearly presented. There is an art to academic writing and discourse, and Part Three aims to help undergraduates develop core academic skills.
Successful assignments or exam essays will depend upon a sound answer construction to the question that is being posed. The difference between an adequate answer that will pass and a good answer that will attract extra marks will depend upon how widely read the student is, and how he or she develops the construction of their answer. The following features are employed in Part Two to provide sign-posts pointing the way from an adequate assignment or essay towards a good piece of work. They must, however, be used in conjunction with the syllabus and learning outcomes identified for the course of study being undertaken by the student. Best use of this volume will be made by those who understand what is expected of them by their lecturers.
Key thinkers/Key issues
Where appropriate ‘key thinkers’ (who may be practitioners or academics) or ‘key issues’, are identified and introduced and additional reference is made as required. This feature provides either a context within which to read the sub-section or the framework for the sub-section. Key thinkers and issues are likely to feature in answers and essays. For example:
Key thinkers
Sir David Phillips, John Grieve and Brian Flood, all senior police officers with considerable detective experience, pioneered intelligence-led policing in the 1990s. Their work was reinforced by two important reports: Audit Commission (1993) Helping with Enquiries: Tackling Crime Effectively, London: Audit Commission; and HMIC (1999) Policing with Intelligence, London: HMIC.
Case studies
Where used, these boxes give examples illustrating issues or key points.
Bullet point summaries
Where used, these boxes provide a checklist to summarise and highlight key points for students.
Taking it further
Probably the most frequently used feature, these boxed features pose questions for the reader to reflect upon when thinking about how to develop an answer to a particular topic. The questions posed could feature in an exam or as an assignment title. For example:
Taking it FURTHER
A useful area for further exploration is the relationship between public and private policing, especially in relation to the growing phenomenon of gated communities or in areas where local residents have hired their own private security. For instance, does the presence of private policing generate more work for the public police?
Tips
Boxed and signalled by a tack, Tips will help plan and structure answers, focusing on how to apply learning, how to analyse data and how to present a critical argument. For example:
There are two important areas to the study of criminal investigation, each linked to investigation quality. The first aspect is the legitimacy (including integrity) of investigation, the second concerns the practicalities of investigation management.
Common pitfalls
Common mistakes and confusions lose marks. Where appropriate, these have been highlighted to assist the reader in avoiding such adverse consequences. For example:
Common pitfalls: Confusing the terms international and transnational policing in essays and exam answers will lose marks.
Failing to acknowledge the key differences between different types of jurisdiction and legal tradition, which define domestic policing, will suggest to the examiner that the candidate does not fully appreciate the complexity of context within which transnational and international policing takes place.
Textbook guide
Each section ends with a list of texts: either relevant laws, original/official documents or academic studies and secondary literature reviews that will broaden and develop the reader’s understanding of the topic being presented. None of the lists is exhaustive but all supplement a broad introduction to the su...
