Value of Measuring Community Policing Performance in Madison, Wisconsin (From Policing and Community Partnerships, P 77-92, 2000, Dennis J. Stevens, ed., -- See NCJ-194083)

• NCJ Number: 194088
• Author(s): Michael F. Masterson; Dennis J. Stevens
• Date Published: 2002
• Length: 16 pages
• Sale Source: Prentice Hall Publishing
• Publication Format: Book (Softbound)
• Publication Type: Measurement/Evaluation Device
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This chapter describes the experiences of the Madison (Wisconsin) Police Department (MPD) as they measured community-policing performance in some of their challenged neighborhoods.

Abstract

One mission of the MPD was to better understand the needs of the residents in the neighborhoods through their own experiences. What made this study unique is that measuring police performance was conducted entirely by police personnel. The lessons learned from this study were: (1) by listening to the individuals in the community, the MPD enhanced police decision-making practices, which better served crime control issues through quality police services; (2) the MPD is only one of many participants that shape the meaning of quality police service; and (3) MPD police personnel have greater opportunities to develop community policing initiatives and enhance some of their police skills when they conduct the research themselves. In 1987, the MPD developed an incident-driven questionnaire soliciting resident experiences related to: officer concern, helpfulness, knowledge, fairness, and solving problems. The survey also asked the respondents how often the officers made them feel safe, what levels of officer conduct they witnessed, officer response time, and their overall impression of the quality of service they received. Recent questionnaires designed by the MPD solicit responses concerning resident longevity in the neighborhood, their desire to move away, availability of youth programming and day care, likes and dislikes about the area, and their single greatest need for their neighborhood. These surveys presented a tremendous opportunity to visit with and talk to people who were constantly struggling to improve their living conditions and the neighborhoods they live in. It was a meaningful way of helping to minimize inappropriate perceptions about the public held by some officers and helped to minimize inappropriate perceptions held by the public about the police. The most important benefits suggest that the involvement of uniformed police officers could in the long run reduce crime and the fear of crime by enhancing citizen attitudes toward police, independent of any information they gain or what the police do with it. 28 references