Responding to police misconduct: A scoping review of prevention and mitigation policies

• In Event: Organizational Dynamics of Police Misconduct

Abstract

1) Among other consequences, police misconduct can erode public trust, reduce confidence in police agencies, and damage police legitimacy. To combat and perhaps prevent these activities, the researchers conducted a structured literature review to map the existing strategies, mechanisms, policies, and processes that have been shown to be effective at preventing and/or mitigating police officer misconduct.
2) Following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses Extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR), a structured literature search was completed to identify and analyse peer-reviewed research between 1994-2024. Pertinent information was extracted from 76 studies using a data extraction matrix that included: 1) publication data/location; 2) police officer type; 3) methodology; 4) misconduct typology; 5) program typology; and 6) research outcome.
3) Findings suggest most studies are recent, based out of westernized policing contexts, and are modest at preventing and/or responding to on-duty abuse of authority. Body-worn cameras, governmental monitoring programs, and public feedback programs were commonly used to reduce and prevent police misconduct.
4) Implications suggest that considerable variation in how scholars/police define misconduct. However, the ways in which police services have tried to prevent and/or respond to misconduct is even more varied with some jurisdictions applying multiple programs simultaneously.

Authors

• Adam Vaughan, University of Regina

• Josh Murphy, Kwantlen Polytechnic University

• Chris Burns, Kwantlen Polytechnic University

• Marika Lopez, Simon Fraser University

• Jasmeen Kaur, Kwantlen Polytechnic University