POLICE AND THE USE OF EVIDENCE-BASED PRACTICE

Evidence-based policing focuses on using scientific research on what works to guide practice. While the evidence base for what works in policing has grown rapidly in recent years, less is known about the extent to which policing practice is evidence-based. This chapter reviews what is known (and not known) about how officers and agencies make use of research and scientific evidence in their work. The chapter draws from empirical research and experience with field studies in three areas. First, this chapter explores what is known about receptivity to research and police openness to using evidence-based practices, covering studies of officers at multiple ranks in multiple contexts. Second, this chapter examines the extent to which current policing practice is evidence-based, drawing from agency surveys and observational studies from around the world. Finally, this chapter highlights efforts to increase the use of evidence-based practice. Examples include translation tools to make research more accessible for police and researcher-agency partnerships to help facilitate the integration of research into practice. The chapter concludes with the limitations of current research, and suggestions for future work to improve policing by studying evidence-based policing in the field.