Crisis in Police Ethics: Is Professionalization An Answer?

Binding consensual norms and their manifestation as codes of ethical behavior are unlikely to develop without conditions that promote role reciprocity and bilateral communication. Bureaucracy in policing functions acts as an impediment to the genesis of these conditions. A true professionalization of policing that emphasizes professional autonomy and self- regulation offers promise for creating these conditions and an accompanying effective ethics code. Sufficient evidence is available to support the belief that professionalization would markedly change the contemporary institution of policing in ways that would foster role reciprocity, bilateral communication, and consensus building. 38 references