Twenty-three women officers’ experiences of policing in England: The same old story or a different story?

Abstract

Our research project was concerned primarily with using a feminist analysis to explore the lived reality of 23 women police officers in England and Wales. We undertook 23 qualitative interviews with our participants and our research straddles four decades of policing practice, which allowed us to explore changes that were seen to have taken place during this period. First, participants discussed their lived reality, which included banter, bullying and harassment for many. Second, and perhaps more surprisingly, at certain times of unrest, riots or threats, some of our participants were provided with opportunities, for example, during the IRA threat, the riot in Toxteth and the miners’ strike. We suggest that examples from our data capture an early disruption of the ‘ideal’ heroic male police officer that Silvestri examines [Silvestri M (2018) Disrupting the ‘heroic’ male within policing: a case of direct entry. Feminist Criminology 13(3): 309–328] whose removal from their normal role during periods of socio-political disorder allowed women officers to leave the gendered division of labour and undertake the heroic police constable role while the men were busy being ‘heroic’ at the source of threat and unrest. We sought to explore changes such as the uniform as a site of protest for some of our officers who challenged an uncomfortable and unfit uniform in the early days, and explained that there were still problems with the kit and design at times. Our findings illustrated that, on the whole, although massive changes had been made, it was a case of the same old story in terms of sexual harassment and banter for female officers and more was required to address these issues, which fits with reviews and studies in both England and Wales and in Australia. Finally, we noted using participants’ words how much many of these women had enjoyed their role within policing in spite of these challenges.

Leadership Characteristics Through The Lens of Translocational Positionality Framework: Trailblazing Women in Policing

“…They viewed this as an opportunity to display resilience and validate that they possessed all the qualities necessary to reach the highest levels of leadership despite them being the first or only women, which made them trailblazers. Women are scrutinized as they move up the rank structure due to the gendered norms in police organizations, which insinuated that women could not do the job (Cunningham & Ramshaw, 2020). In response to the question: Explain what pushed you to attempt to break through the class ceiling in your organization , one leader noted:When I applied for the Deputy Chief position, I didn’t make it.…”

“…The Cunningham and Ramshaw (2020) study posited that the hegemonic masculine culture in policing is rooted in masculinities based on holding and preserving male power and privilege and subordination of other groups. Oftentimes, the presence of women in high-ranking positions creates conflict and challenges in some police organizations.…”

“…Oftentimes, the presence of women in high-ranking positions creates conflict and challenges in some police organizations. Women’s presence in senior positions inspires a narrative that insinuates women did not possess the leadership skills but got the promotion simply because they were women (Cunningham & Ramshaw, 2020).…”

“…The difference between male and female police leaders in this context is the male domination of positions of authority (Doan & Portillo, 2017) and the perception that men are better police leaders than women which sets the conditions for the lack of respect for women police leaders (Haake, 2018). Police organizations represent the deeply entrenched and pervasive power culture, hierarchical relationships, autocratic leadership styles, and norm of hegemonic culture which illustrates the persistence of male canteen culture (Cunningham & Ramshaw, 2020). There is not one way or template to be a leader.…”

Trajectory of Women’s Advancement in Policing: A Comparative Study Between China and the United States

“…For the former, we argue that women's and men's gendered characteristics must be considered to ensure fairness and equality for women (and men) and to maximise individuals' capacities; for the latter, the article has indicated that women are not a homogeneous group or a 'universal category' (Mohanty 1984). While in both Northern and Southern societies, life has been and may continue to be difficult for women (Cunningham and Ramshaw 2020), individual women in whichever jurisdictions make individual choices when facing opportunities and obstacles. Through a comparative lens, this article offers additional Southern ingredients to the breadth of gender policing literature, which historically has had a Northern focus.…”