Evidence-based policing and police receptivity to research: evidence from Taiwan

Abstract

PurposeThis paper aims to investigate how evidence-based policing (EBP) is understood by police officers and citizens in Taiwan and the influence of police education on police recruit's receptivity to research evidence in policing.Design/methodology/approachThe study uses a cross-sectional design that includes Taiwanese police officers (n = 671) and a control group of Taiwanese criminology undergraduate students (n = 85). A research instrument covering five themes is developed, and after a pilot test the final scale remains 14 items.FindingsThe analysis suggests that police officers in Taiwan generally hold a positive view towards the role of research and researchers in policing, more so than is often observed in similar studies conducted in Western countries. Receptivity to research was found to be significantly higher among the non-police sample compared to the police sample. Moreover, time spent in police education was significantly associated with lower levels of receptivity to research.Originality/valueThe paper makes two original contributions to the literature on police officer receptivity to research. It is the first paper to (1) empirically examine police officers' openness to, and use of research in an Asian setting and (2) to compare police officers' receptivity to research with those of a relevant non-police group.

Police education and democratic policing in Taiwan: a longitudinal quasi-experimental study of the effects of selection and police socialisation on human rights, moral reasoning and prejudice

“…These findings are consistent with the longitudinal studies that found that academy training, rather than operational experiences, had a greater (negative) impact on officer attitudes and behaviours (Catlin & Maupin, 2004;Fildes et al, 2017). This significant change during police training and non-change during police fieldwork might be explained by both the socialisation process in academy training (Chappell & Lanza-Kaduce, 2010;Conti, 2011) and the similarities of organisational norms and culture in training/working context between CPU and Taiwanese police organisations (Lin et al, 2022). The socialisation process in the CPU entails stripping recruits' old civilian identity via imposing a series of degradations and channelling them towards the police occupation that is characterised by the 'formal, mechanical and arbitrary bureaucratic features' (Chan, 2003;Van Maanen, 1974, p. 88).…”

“…However, the way jingshen education is conducted on the ground involves close control of routine activities, discipline, group punishments, ritualistic concerns for details, and repetitive exercises (e.g. drill, recitation) (Adlam, 2002;Cao et al, 2015;Lin, 2020). This education puts recruits under intense surveillance where their HR are often restricted.…”