This article analyzes the relationships between assignments to a traditional or community policing role, officer perceptions of impact and three dimensions of job satisfaction.
The article used data collected as part of a community policing program in Philadelphia, and structural equation modeling, to explore the causal relationships between officer perceptions of impact and job satisfaction. In general, the path leading to job satisfaction was very similar for traditional and community-oriented police officers. Perceived job impact was largely determined by job satisfaction such that officers who were more satisfied with their job were more likely to perceive that they were having an impact, a finding that was invariant across officer patrol type (motorized or community). Findings suggest that attention to what police officers think they should be doing and how they actually accomplish their jobs is a necessary condition to linking satisfaction with changes in values and the adoption of differing styles of police work. Notes, tables, figures, references