Reflections from a Police Research Unit—An Inside Job1

摘要

While research can be of great benefit to the police, there has undoubtedly been a fractious relationship between the two. This paper outlines the experience of the only dedicated civilian research unit based within a police force in the country. In particular, the paper highlights a number of unique challenges conducting research within this environment; such as police culture, or the range of different customers we work with, each presenting differing views on research. Key learning around our methods used to overcome these issues is also presented. Whilst embedding change within the police will always be a slow process, by gently nudging and teasing our research outputs into policing via a range of techniques we can facilitate improvement to the way that policing is delivered in London. This also holds clear implications for other police forces throughout the UK and beyond in how they utilize and ensure research is an integral part of their service.