- Published: September 26, 2022
- Updated: September 26, 2022
- University / College: The University of Warwick
- Level: Intermediate School
- Language: English
- Downloads: 23
11 October Ethics The impact of ethics in policing is immense because policing affects the life of each and every individual of the society. “ The public and media have had a long-running fascination with police work” (Gaines and Kappeler 12). Law enforcing agencies must have solid grounds for developing and implementing the policies so that they affect the society in a positive way and thus fulfill their intended purpose.
Proper ethical training of police is very important because of their roles and responsibilities in the society. “ Police officers are held to a higher standard of behavior by society, because they are stewards of the public trust and are empowered to apply force and remove constitutional privileges when lawfully justified” (Gleason). Police does not only take an oath of protecting the nation, but is also expected to adhere to the highest standards of ethics and respect the laws they enforce upon others. Proper ethical training helps the police recognize ethical dilemma, identify solutions, select the most appropriate solution from among a range of options, take prompt action, and take responsibility for the consequences.
There are certain strategies that the police leaders can adopt to instill ethics in the organization. (Zuidema and Duff) highlight some of them; The police leaders should make the ethical behavior a necessary part of the organization’s mission and values. These values include but are not limited to leadership, dedication, and professionalism. This way, it becomes more convenient for the employees of the police department to recall the terms since they are part of in the organization’s initials. The best way to achieve this effect is to display the values of ethical behavior for the officers and the community members on the brochures, website, and cars used by the organizational personnel. The police leaders should emphasize upon the ethical behavior in such organizational events as meetings and sessions of training and skill development. Inviting the sworn officers of law enforcement at all public ceremonies held by the organization to recite the oath of honor can be a potential way to achieve this. Police departments can also place emphasis on the ethical behavior in the philosophy of their organization. For example, the officers may be granted the power to solve problems individually and make the required decisions in mutual consensus with the citizens. If the officers are granted this right, this would not only make them more particular about the ethical concerns and implications of their decisions and actions, but would also make them more responsible in general, but this requires increased acceptability of the leaders towards the bad decisions and errors made by the officers in the process of their learning. Doing mistakes is part of learning which is required to achieve excellence. “ To encourage ethical behavior amidst both right and wrong decisions, leaders must differentiate between “ mistakes of the head” (honest errors resulting from a lack of training or experience) and “ mistakes of the heart” (based on unethical decisions) and deal with each appropriately” (Zuidema and Duff 8). Last but not the least, organizations need to target all unethical issues individually and eradicate them from the system.
Works Cited:
Gaines, Larry K., and Kappeler, Victor E. Policing in America. USA: Anderson
Publishing, 2012. Print.
Gleason, Tag. “ Ethics Training for Police.” The Police Chief. Vol. 73. No. 11. Nov. 2006.
Web. 11 Oct. 2012. .
Zuidema, Brandon V., and Duff, Wayne. “ Organizational Ethics through Effective
Leadership.” Police Practice. FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin. Mar. 2009. Web. 11 Oct. 2012.