Constrained Agency: Gender and Finding Opportunities for Advancement in Policing

• In Event: The Evolving Experiences of Women in Policing

Abstract

Few women have entered into leadership positions in police organizations—mostly because there is what has been called a leaking pipeline in policing (Bailyn, 2003) whereby women in the frontline positions in the organizations leave before they can advance to the upper echelons. This lack of advancement is somewhat due to the resistance women have faced from male officers. This resistance began when policewomen shifted from stereotypically feminine duties involving children to more traditional police responsibilities with the organization. We do know that some women persist and thrive in leadership positions. Little is known, however, about how these women have successfully navigated the police hierarchy to earn promotion and advancement. Using data collected from 47 biographical interviews and Herndl and Licona’s constrained agency theory, the current research examines the conditions in which some female officers are able to claim authority and advance within police organizations and those that hold others back from achieving success. Overall, interview data suggest that that advancement is the result of contextualized opportunities for action allow for the marginalized and voiceless to reach their goals. This is also described by Herndl and Licona as dependent upon a kairotic moment—a “social location in time and space” wherein there is an opportunity for change or action to happen. These kairotic moments can be the result of a lawsuit, finding a mentor or a change in leadership.

Authors

• Melissa Morabito, University of Massachusetts Lowell

• Tara O'Connor Shelley, Colorado State University