Charting the Knowledge Networks of Policing

• In Event: POL Panel 21. Policing research, police knowledge networks and how to translate research into practice.

Abstract

This paper aims to chart the knowledge networks of policing in Norway by examining citation practices in key policy and other important documents related to the promotion of knowledge-based policing within the police organization. By conducting a thorough discourse network analysis (DNA), the study aims to gain insights into the integration of knowledge work into the goals and objectives of the police force, as well as the role of epistemic communities in shaping knowledge-driven practices within the police organization.

The analysis provide a deeper understanding of the complex relationship between knowledge creation, dissemination, and implementation within policing as an epistemic community, which involves a range of actors, such as researchers, practitioners, policymakers, and other stakeholders. Moreover, the study help identify the ways in which epistemic networks may either facilitate or hinder the integration of knowledge-based practices and principles within the police organization.

The study is relevant to current debates on policing and knowledge-based practices, highlighting the importance of collaboration between researchers, practitioners, and policymakers in the implementation of evidence-based policing (EBP). Finally, this study contributes to the development of theoretical frameworks that articulate the role of epistemic communities in shaping knowledge-driven practices within the police organization.

Author

• Camilla Løvschall Langeland, University of Oslo