Abstract

The police institution may appear to be a coherent organization geared to one specific paradigm. In practice it can be almost a different organization operating with diverse paradigms at different times. Or it can become an arena for competing paradigms, suffering from a “multiple personality syndrome” with a shifting diversity in values, structure and culture. Some three decades endeavouring to change traditional styles of policing have displayed periodic oscillation back to “real policing”. This continual shifting around the definition of policing can especially impact on attempts to implement the movement towards “community oriented policing” (COP). It is asserted here that COP is vulnerable to swings back to what some see as the core paradigm of policing – centred on crime control and maintaining order. This paper traces the dynamic of competing paradigms while seeking a solution in “honest” policing with COP at its core.