NCJ Number
84502
Date Published
1981
Length
34 pages
Annotation
Major approaches to the study of politics -- the power approach, the systems approach, and the group approach -- are presented, and the involvement of politics in the criminal justice system and police productivity are considered.
Abstract
The power approach views politics as essentially the operation of power, either through position or personality. Power is relational (exercised with respect to others), bilateral (persons meeting one another's needs), issue based, and situational (dependent on the circumstances surrounding its exercise). Power may be analyzed through an elitist model, where a certain group continually exercises power, or through a pluralist model, where a variety of individuals and groups are influential in community decisionmaking. A systems approach to the study of politics involves viewing political life as a system of action consisting of a set of interactions abstracted from the totality of social behavior, through which values are authoritatively allocated for a society. The group approach to the study of politics consists of identifying interest group activity and the struggle among groups in the pursuit of their goals. In the area of criminal justice, the political scientist focuses on the appropriate boundaries for discretionary action by police prosecutors, courts, and corrections officials. Barriers and enhancements to police productivity are also rooted in political influences, as in the absence of strong public pressures, local officials tend to show little interest in police productivity improvement. A total of 65 references are listed.