Capstone wk5 Michael Smith

Literature Findings

Rashieda NasifDavis

Argosy University

Literature Findings

Introduction

The literature discussion below will provide information on technology in policing and how it being used to improve efficiency in the police department. The discussion below will summarize the key points of the articles, their weaknesses and strengths, and how the articles relate to each other. At the end of the discussion the importance of technology in policing will have been understood and its importance on reducing crime in the society.

Literature Findings

Kopper et al. (2015) argues that the technology in policing is being used to improve the police legitimacy in the community along with lowering crime rates. The article strengths are that it is detailed and easy to understand highlight both the negative and positive effects of technology on policing. The weakness of the article is that it lacks lots of statistical data that is more convincing to the readers. The article findings indicate that technology is being used by the police to improve the efficiency of their functions. The understanding from the article is that technology is important in policing not only in improving the efficiency of their services, but also to make policing understood and supported by the society.

McQuade (2006) supports the above argument of using the technology to improve the efficiency of policing function and goes ahead to argue that technology in policing is being used to help the police cub the criminal activities that are changing with technology. As the police technology advances, so do criminals advance their crime technology to outwit the police. McQuade argues that technology is not only used to react to crime and reduce its occurrence, but it is as well used to prevent crime by identifying potential threats and devising ways to deal with such threats. The strengths of the article is that its provides the reader with a proactive use of technology in policing with the weakness being that it lacks graphs and other statistical figures that can be used to simplify the discussed information. The findings indicate that technology can be used to prevent and control crime in the U.S which would lower the rates of crime in the nation with a great margin. The finding helps one to understand that technology reduces crime in the US by managing threats and responding promptly to crime scenes.

Technology has changed the policing process with the technology used in policing functions already showing its importance in the sector (Van Brakel, & De Hert, 2011). The authors take a different approach with those discussed above, whereby they choose to focus mainly on surveillance technology on policing citing that it has improved the efficiency of the police despite raising some controversies with its implementation approach. The article is presented in an easy to understand language despite lacking statistical figures that normally summarize information and make it easy to understand. The article findings are that surveillance technology raises issues of social and legal concern although they have improved policing functions. The knowledge contribute to the hypothesis by providing a critique of the consequences of policing technology.

Skogan & Hartnett ( ), technology in policing is in the process of being adopted and detectives and other units using the technology have found it easy to use the technology since it is easily accessible and free. The technology also makes police feel empowered and utilize the technology better. The authors take a unique stand unlike the other authors by focusing on the utilization of the technology in policing. The finding of the research indicate that information technology is being used by the police departments more as Data Warehouses become important in the society. The article is easy to understand and contains statistical evidence that is more convincing although it fails to clearly present the impact of Data Warehouses in the society.

Manning (2008) provides that technology is used in policing to improve the efficiency of the forces and reduce crime rates. The findings of the author indicate that the technology in policing can be used mapping crime and noting the crime hotspots to take precautionary measures. Manning supports Kopper et al. (2015) and McQuade (2006) claim that technology improve efficiency and reliability of the police force. The findings of the author show that the crime rates can be reduced even further with better use of technology.

Byrne and Marx (2011) indicate that there have been various innovations in the hard and soft technologies used in policing. Some of the changes notable in the hard technology sector of innovations include safety devices, non-electric immobilizing gadgets, and non-lethal weaponry. These technologies are embraced at a rapid rate, especially due the efficiency that they bring along. Examples of soft technology innovations include data collection and analysis, police strategies based on crime data collected. Such innovations are revolutionizing the policing system as they increase accuracy, save time, and reduce the workload of the police. The strengths of this article is in the clarity with which the authors explain the different technologies and how they have improved efficiency in policing. However, a major weakness is notable in that the article does not give the negative consequences of these innovations.

Lum, Koper, and Willis (2017) take a different perspective concerning the impact of technology on police effectiveness, noting that there are some limits to this impact. The authors explain that there is inadequate clarity concerning the link between improved technology in the policing area, and the possible outcomes. The strength of the article lies in the fact that the authors acknowledge that technology could help make policing more effective. However, the weakness emerges whereby the authors fail to provide specific examples of the effectiveness arising from the technology. The findings of the article indicate that the reactive and policing approaches are a part of the limitations of the technology’s impact on effectiveness. These approaches create organizational and technological frames, which limit the potential of the technology in crime prevention and the police work. Therefore, is necessary that these approaches be changed modified to eliminate the limitations.

According to Custers (2012), police bodies all over the world are working earnestly with the aim of capitalizing on the technology available for policing. Custers (2012) agrees with the idea raised by Lum, Koper, and Willis (2017) obstacles in police departments that create limitations for the use of technology. However, this author goes an extra mile by elaborating the various types of technology that can be used to carry out investigations, prosecution, and law enforcement, and the obstacles hindering their success.

This elaboration is the strength of this article as it gives the audience something to think about when analyzing the topic. Moreover, the findings of the article indicate that some of the technologies in policing such as DNA research, camera surveillance, data mining, and profiling have a great potential in policing. However, the author fails to suggest a strategy for overcoming the obstacles that these technologies might face, thus bringing about the weakness of the article.

In their article, Custers and Vergouw (2015, the authors agree with the thoughts portrayed by the other articles, whereby they claim that technology has a promising future in policing especially because of the effectiveness it brings about in crime prevention and control. Basing arguments on a survey conducted among various police forces, it appears that many more of the police department are gaining acceptance in this field. Just like the other authors, Custer and Vergouw also suggest that some challenges may prevent the full utilization of technology. Some of the most notable obstacles noted in the article include insufficient funds to acquire and run the technology, and the lack of interest among some law enforcement officers to ensure that success stories emerge from the technology.

Skogan and Hartnett, (2015) are also in support of the arguments raised by other authors who claim that technology innovation in police departments could help increase their effectiveness in fighting crime. However, these authors does not just stop at analyzing the issue of technology in relation to policing, but also analyzes it in relation to crime rate. This is a strength of the article as it provides an additional insight into how improve technology is increasing crime rate, thus making work a little more difficult for the police.

References

Byrne, J., & Marx, G. (2011). Technological innovations in crime prevention and policing. A review of the research on implementation and impact. Journal of Police Studies, 20(3), 17-40.

Custers, B. (2012). Technology in policing: Experiences, obstacles and police needs. Computer Law & Security Review, 28(1), 62-68.

Custers, B., & Vergouw, B. (2015). Promising policing technologies: Experiences, obstacles and police needs regarding law enforcement technologies. Computer Law & Security Review, 31(4), 518-526.

Koper, C. S., Willis, J. J., Woods, D. J., & Hibdon, J. (2015). Technology in Policing.

Lum, C., Koper, C. S., & Willis, J. (2017). Understanding the Limits of Technology’s Impact on Police Effectiveness. Police Quarterly, 20(2), 135-163.

Manning, P. K. (2008). The technology of policing: crime mapping, information technology, and the rationality of crime control. NYU Press.

McQuade, S. (2006). Technology-enabled crime, policing and security.

Skogan, W. G., & Hartnett, S. M. (2005). The diffusion of information technology in policing. Police Practice and Research, 6(5), 401-417.

Skogan, W. G., & Hartnett, S. M. (2005). The Diffusion of Information Technology in Policing. Police Practice & Research, 6(5), 401-417.

Van Brakel, R., & De Hert, P. (2011). Policing, surveillance and law in a pre-crime society: Understanding the consequences of technology based strategies. Technology-Led Policing, 20, 165-92.