The interplay of Police and Science: what can we learn from each other?

Session Submission Type: Pre-arranged Panel

Abstract

Both academics and police organisations seem to agree that there are mutually beneficial synergies in cooperating with each other. The police can benefit from academic insights to improve their own organization and procedures, while academics need the cooperation of the police if they want to be able to base their research on factual data, and if the goal is to inform policy and practice through research (Fleming 2010). Though a lot of emphasis is place on quantitative research due to the prevalence of evidence-based policing (Sherman 1998), the range of methodologies and types of collaboration are growing further. At the same time, one cannot deny that this road has been bumpy, and the relationship has been described as a ‘dialogue of the deaf’ (Bronitt, 2013). The police can consider academic criticism as unfair, while academics may find it difficult to find the right balance and be a ‘critical friend’, someone who is independent but at the same time is actively searching to work together with the police to make improvements.
In this panel, we present a number of papers related to this subject. One paper compares the police-science landscape in two countries. A second paper zooms into the potential contributions of Science and Technology Studies for police research and police practice. A third paper showcases the importance of academic concepts such as policing and the police function on the political discussions of our expectations of the police in the (near) future. Finally, the last paper explores our academic understanding of the framing of police decisions in an ethical and not just a legal framework, enhancing police practices.

Subtopic

• Topic 5: Social Control and Criminal Justice / Policing and Law enforcement (Policing WG)

Chair

• Joery Matthys, Leiden University

Individual Presentations

• Theorizing technoscience in-of policing and police studies - Vlad Niculescu-Dinca, Leiden University

• The police-science landscape in Belgium and the Netherlands. A comparison. - Monica den Boer, Leiden University; Joery Matthys, Leiden University

• The police function and the future of policing - Joery Matthys, Leiden University

• How It Works: Police-Science Collaboration Towards Evidence-Based Policing - Mieke Struike, Netherlands Police; Valérie Peeck, Netherlands Institute for the Study of Crime and Law Enforcement NSCR; Vana Hutter, Netherlands Institute for the Study of Crime and Law Enforcement (NSCR), Amsterdam, the Netherlands Department of Human Movement Sciences, Faculty of Behavioural and Movement Sciences, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, the Netherla; Stijn Ruiter, NSCR