NCJ Number
108833
Journal
Canadian Police College Journal Volume: 11 Issue: 2 Dated: (1987) Pages: 89-105
Date Published
1987
Length
17 pages
Annotation
Based on a 1985 unscientific, informal survey of 75 law enforcement executives in the world's largest law enforcement agencies, this article identifies those areas where police agencies will face challenges in the near future (prior to 1990).
Abstract
Changes that will affect policing in the near future are the shift from an industrial economy to a service/information economy, a transfer of power from the central government to State and local governments, demographic changes, the impact of high technology, and the changing nature of crime. Some of the implications of these changes for policing are reduced public financing for law enforcement, the threat of computer-related and drug-related crime, increased violence, the development of organizational structure to serve police information requirements, and the application of high technology in policing. Other challenges are the training of police to perform increasingly complex duties, the addressing of police drug abuse and other personnel problems, and overcrowding in all components of the criminal justice system. Labor-management relations and terrorism are other significant issues that will challenge police forces in the near future.