Learning How to Test in Policing: The Lessons for the Conduct and Management of Experiments from Frontline Police Staff Involved in a Randomized Controlled Trial

• In Event: Issues in Evidence Based Policing

Abstract

As Evidence-based policing (EBP) develops as a key philosophy and practice in policing, one strand that is both controversial and challenging is the testing of key tactics and strategies by randomised controlled trials. There has been a significant expansion in the use of the RCT design in since 2010 with a consequent expansion in the number of scholars and institutions engaged in RCT research. There has not, however, been as much attention devoted to the conduct and management of RCTs and even less to the experience of police officers involved in the experimental process. This paper will draw on interviews with frontline staff engaged in Operation Turning Point – a UK based RCT comparing prosecution with a pre-court diversion for juvenile and adult offenders – to explore the factors that contribute to the effective conduct and management of a field experiment in policing.

Author

• Peter Neyroud, Cambridge University