Making of a Police Officer

Tore Bjørgo is a professor at the University of Oslo and an adjunct professor of police science at the Norwegian Police University College. He is also director of the Center for Research on Extremism (C-REX). He initiated the RECPOL project in 2008 and has been leading it since the start until recently. He has published extensively in the fields of violent extremism and terrorism, criminal gangs, crime prevention, policing and vigilantism.Marie-Louise Damen is an associate professor in quantitative research methods at the Norwegian Police University College in Oslo. Her research interests are sociology of higher education, stratification, cultural sociology, social movements and research methodology. Since October 2017 she has been involved in the RECPOL-project and has gradually taken over as coordinator.

The international and comparative research on police education and training described in this book offers fundamental empirical insights regarding an aspect of vital concern in police studies. Researchers and policy makers alike will find in this volume a wealth of information and detail that will provide insights into career entry and early professional socialization into the police organization in seven European countries. Original research of this kind practically demonstrates the important contribution of independent academic research on the public understanding of police institutions.James Sheptycki, Professor of Criminology, York University, CanadaThe book answers important questions about how to recruit and train police, and ways to nurture healthy perspectives among officers and launch successful careers in law enforcement. Sweeping across seven regions of the northern hemisphere, the research behind these findings and recommendations promises to be applicable to a broad variety of policing traditions. There is nothing else like it.Wesley G. Skogan, Professor of Political Science, Institute for Policy Research, Northwestern University, USAThis book is an eye-opener for all those engaged in policing. The authors address the broader issues related to police recruitment, education and its academisation. Debunking widespread myths, they add essential nuances to its complexity and offer a research agenda for the future. Marleen Easton, Professor Governing & Policing Security, Faculty of Economics and Business Administration, Ghent UniversityHow can we ‘make’ police officers? What we need is a consistent democratic approach from recruitment to further education. But how can we neither produce Dirty Harrys nor Legalists? How can we implement the right philosophy of policing into police students? This study by a European group of police scholars provides us with substantial data and interpretation. A must read for police educators all over Europe.Thomas Feltes, Senior professor in Criminology and Police Science, Ruhr-University Bochum, Germany

• 1. A longitudinal and comparative European study of Recruitment, Education and Careers in the Police (RECPOL): what this project contributes to the development of police science, Tore Bjørgo and Marie-Louise Damen, 2. Police education in seven European countries in the framework of their police Systems, Kjersti Hove and Lola Vallès. 3. Diversity and academisation: who does police education attract?, Rasmus Juul Møberg, 4. Iceland as a microcosm of the effects of educational reform on police students’ social background, Guðmundur Oddsson, Andrew Paul Hill, Ólafur Örn Bragason, Þóroddur Bjarnason and Kjartan Ólafsson, 5. Mirroring society: how politically representative are police students in Europe?, Gunnar Thomassen, 6 . Understanding learning preferences and career expectations of Norwegian police students from a comparative perspective, Pål Winnæss, Marie-Louise Damen and Gunnar Thomassen, 7. Police students’ values of enduring and emerging competence areas in police education, Staffan Karp, Kirsi Kohlström, Oscar Rantatalo and Mojgan Padyab, 8. Horizontal and Vertical career preferences for male and female police recruits, Rasmus Juul Møberg and Marie-Louise Damen, 9. Cynicism and (dis)trust in the police: Self-selection or evolving attitudes?, Gunnar Thomassen and Jon Strype, 10. Producing legalists or Dirty Harrys? Police education and field training, Silje Bringsrud Fekjær and Otto Petersson 11. Selecting and shaping police students in Europe: main findings and discussion, Marie-Louise Damen and Tore Bjørgo