NCJ Number
80141
Date Published
1980
Length
226 pages
Annotation
Data from the Police Foundation on 1,134 police officers were used to test Muir's typology, according to which police officers can be grouped into four general types: the professional, the enforcer, the reciprocator, and the avoider.
Abstract
These types represented combinations of the officer's view of the nature of mankind and the officer's view of the moral justification of the use or threat of coercion. The typologies were designed to address the need to find police personnel who can perform their duties in a democratic yet efficient manner. The study data contained numerous attitudinal items and some behavioral items on the 1,134 police officers. Independent raters and the author selected indicators of dimensions analogous to those in Muir's typology, since the data were collected using a different approach than that of Muir. A total of 45 criterion variables were chosen to indicate job satisfaction, attitudes about the parameters of the task, the role of the police officer, and personal conduct. Findings failed to support Muir's typology in that Muir's dimensions did not predict the types he proposed and it was impossible to identify types that conformed to Muir's four types. Thus, Muir's typology has not yet been shown to describe anything beyond mere logical possibilities. The typology cannot yet be considered for practical application. In addition, the types Muir describes may not exist. Thus, it would be inappropriate to select or assign officers on the basis of the typology that was operationalized in the study. Tables, 48 references, and appendixes presenting the data collection instrument, the indicators chosen by the researcher, and the correspondence between the author and Muir are provided. (Author summary modified)