NCJ Number
184393
Date Published
December 1998
Length
2 pages
Publication Series
Annotation
This paper reports on a survey that examined the informal network
of information sharing among police organizations; through this
informal network, police planners and others directly contact
other law enforcement agencies to obtain the information they
need to manage their departments.
Abstract
The survey was administered to police planners in 360 local
organizations (all with 100 or more sworn officers) and 43 State
law enforcement agencies between March and June 1996. The
response rate was 71 percent. The survey focused on seven issues:
What agencies are planners most likely to contact when they look
for information? What factors influence the choice of a contact?
How frequent are these contacts? What is the mode of
communication? What are the resource requirements associated with
these requests? Are requests for information specific? How well
are police planning and research units prepared to conduct
research? The survey found that the communication between law
enforcement planners is both frequent and relatively well
organized. The principal mode of communication is by telephone,
but newer technologies such as the electronic bulletin boards and
World Wide Web sites show significant potential. Police
organizations devoted significant resources to responding to
outside agencies' requests for information. Agency similarity and
reputation of the organization were key factors for police
planners when selecting the particular agency to contact. Most
planning and research managers believed that their staff have not
had adequate preparation in the skills required to conduct
research in their own organizations. This paper concludes with
suggestions for enhancing the informal network of information
exchange and recommends topics for further research.
Date Published: December 1, 1998