Poster #4 - Accounting for Police Whistleblowing

• In Event: ASC Poster Session I

Abstract

This study examines how police whistleblowers make sense of their decision to speak about or report misconduct. Specifically, we use the sociology of accounts as a theoretical framework and interviews with 23 former and current officers who self-identified as police whistleblowers to understand how they excused or justified their actions. Findings suggest that participants either reject the whistleblower label to show how they still value police culture or they accept the label and portray themselves as “good” officers who value the ideals of policing over bad actors. Findings have implications for understanding how departmental culture can facilitate or constrain whistleblowing.

Authors

• Anna Ellliott, University of Alabama at Birmingham

• Heith Copes, University of Alabama at Birmingham

• Natalie Todak, University of Alabama at Birmingham