Authors:
Applies passive and active representative bureaucracy theory to American police departments to examine incidences of police brutality and use of deadly force particularly against racial minorities
Presents a comprehensive Representation Index created from a large national dataset that measures the ratio of racial makeup of local police to the corresponding at-large population
Examines variables such as unemployment rate, size of the minority population, city size, agency size, region, and minorities holding political office in relation to levels of passive representation across local police forces
Includes supplementary material: sn.pub/extras
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Table of contents (6 chapters)
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Front Matter
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Back Matter
About this book
This book examines issues of race and policing through the lens of representative bureaucracy theory. According to representative bureaucracy theory, demographic correspondence between government employees and the local population can lead to more favorable outcomes for minority groups. It argues that police forces with higher minority composition will have more positive outcomes across measures such as fewer excessive force complaints and fewer fatal encounters with officers. Additionally, the book asserts that more representative forces will demonstrate responsiveness and accountability by implementing policies such as citizen review boards for excessive force complaints. It does this by first providing a brief overview of issues surrounding race and policing in America, documenting racial representation occurring in local police forces nationwide, and exploring the potential causes and consequences of underrepresentation. It concludes by discussing the implications of our findings and offer potential policy remedies and solutions that local law enforcements can pursue in order to reduce minority underrepresentation and improve policing outcomes.
Keywords
- minorities
- representative bureaucracy
- passive representation
- active representation
- quantitative
- representation index
- lethal force
- regression analysis
- administration
- bureaucracy
- Ferguson
- us politics
- policing
Authors and Affiliations
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Georgia College and State University, Milledgeville, USA
Brandy A. Kennedy
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California State University, Long Beach, Long Beach, USA
Adam M. Butz
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Uppsala University, Uppsala, USA
Nazita Lajevardi
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University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, USA
Matthew J. Nanes
About the authors
Bibliographic Information
Book Title: Race and Representative Bureaucracy in American Policing
Authors: Brandy A. Kennedy, Adam M. Butz, Nazita Lajevardi, Matthew J. Nanes
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-53991-1
Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan Cham
eBook Packages: Political Science and International Studies, Political Science and International Studies (R0)
Copyright Information: The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s) 2017
Hardcover ISBN: 978-3-319-53990-4Published: 29 June 2017
Softcover ISBN: 978-3-319-85292-8Published: 01 August 2018
eBook ISBN: 978-3-319-53991-1Published: 09 June 2017
Edition Number: 1
Number of Pages: V, 127
Number of Illustrations: 2 b/w illustrations, 7 illustrations in colour
Topics: American Politics, Public Policy, Electoral Politics, Crime Control and Security, Political Sociology, Population and Demography