Verified Document

Criminal Justice Field Research Essay

Concept of Ethics in Criminal Justice Research Ethics is one of the most important issues in the field of criminal justice given its consideration as the mainstay of professionalism in this discipline. The significance of ethics in the criminal justice field is attributable to the fact that the various professionals or actors in this field exercise discretion when making decisions and need to enforce the law in the process. Therefore, ethical considerations are critical in decision-making processes involving discretion, due process, and force. Additionally, such considerations are necessary in criminal justice research, which plays a crucial role in criminal justice practices. This paper focuses on examining the concept of ethics in criminal justice research and potential ethical questions/issues that criminal justice researchers are likely to face.

As previously indicated, professionals and actors in the criminal justice field are faced with various situations that require ethical decision-making. An example of these professionals who need to make ethical considerations and decision-making in their work is criminal justice researchers. Ethics and scientific research are interrelated concepts, particularly in the criminal justice discipline (Wolfgang, 2010). Research processes and activities in criminal justice studies requires making ethical decisions in light of what is right and wrong and/or good and evil. Therefore, the concept of ethics in criminal justice research refers to principles governing the conduct of a criminal justice researcher as he/she acquires information/knowledge relating to the practice. Based on these governing principles, the criminal justice researcher needs to consider the perceptions of right and wrong or good and evil when acquiring information.

Some examples of situations that pose ethical questions include publication of research findings, potential obstruction of justice during the research process, and how to protect the privacy of research participants (Wolfgang, 2010). Criminal justice researchers can address these ethical issues through seeking for written informed consent from participants when conducting the study, maintaining confidentiality and privacy of these participants, and adhering to ethical principles and standards like utilitarianism throughout their work.

In conclusion, ethics is one of the major issues in the field of criminal justice given that the various professionals and actors in this discipline face situations that require ethical considerations. Criminal justice researchers are among professionals who need to make ethical considerations in their line of work. Ethics in criminal justice research entails the principle governing standards utilized by researchers to acquire and utilize information/knowledge for research purposes and for enhancing criminal justice practices. As a result, these professionals are faced with varying situations relating to safeguarding research participants and information obtained from the study. Criminal justice researchers can get around the emerging ethical issues/questions through...

In this regard, patrols by law enforcement officers have been utilized as the premise for arresting crime suspects and helping to deter potential involvement in criminal activities. However, this issue has attracted considerable attention in the recent past, particularly with regards to the effectiveness of police patrol in crime prevention and control. While the case for police patrol has been well established in existing literature, there are questions/concerns on its effectiveness in crime prevention and control. This paper examines research focusing on police patrol in terms of research methods and limitations for the findings. An overall evaluation of the effectiveness of police patrol in crime prevention and control is also included in the paper.
Police patrol has been the subject of numerous studies because of its role in crime prevention and control. One of the recent studies that have been conducted on police patrol is a study by Alison Wakefield on the value of foot patrol. Wakefield (2008) conducted the study on the premise that foot patrol has become prominent in British policing policy. The study focused on examining whether foot patrol by law enforcement officers and other policing agents can meet the high expectations of policymakers and citizens. In this regard, the researcher conducted a comprehensive literature review on social surveys, empirical studies, and policy documents on foot patrol. The study found that foot patrols by police officers are valuable when rendered in a more accessible, common, visible, and knowledgeable manner based on local people and issues. However, the findings are limited on the premise that they focused on the public’ expectations rather than what happens in the patrols and relied on a flawed basis of analysis.

As previously indicated, police patrols are employed to help in prevention and control of crime by law enforcement officers. Since police patrols are carried out using different techniques and based on the community, they are effective in crime prevention and control. Additionally, police patrol is effective in crime prevention and control since it enables police officers to conduct inspections on areas where crimes are likely to occur. The inspections in turn help in preventing possible crimes or lessening the occurrence and impact of the crimes.

In conclusion, police patrol is one of the methods employed by police agencies and personnel to prevent and/or control crime. As a result, this method has attracted considerable attention and been the subject of numerous studies. The study by Wakefield (2008) examines the significance of foot patrol by police officers and found that such patrols are effective when they are responsive to local people and problems. An overall assessment of police patrol demonstrates that it is…

Sources used in this document:

References

Paterline, B.A. & Orr, D. (2016, December). Adaptation to Prison and Inmate Self-Concept. Journal of Psychology and Behavioral Science, 4(2), 70-79.

Paternoster, R. (2010). How Much Do We Really Know About Criminal Deterrence? Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology, 100(3), 765-824. Retrieved from http://scholarlycommons.law.northwestern.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=7363&context=jclc

Rupp, T. (2008, July 1). Meta Analysis of Crime and Deterrence: A Comprehensive Review of the Literature. Retrieved from http://tuprints.ulb.tu-darmstadt.de/1054/2/rupp_diss.pdf

Wakefield, A. (2006). The Value of Foot Patrol: A Review of Research. The Police Foundation. Retrieved from http://www.police-foundation.org.uk/uploads/catalogerfiles/the-value-of-foot-patrol/foot_patrol.pdf

Wolfgang, M.E. (2010). Confidentiality in Criminological Research and Other Ethical Issues. Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology, 72(1). Retrieved from http://scholarlycommons.law.northwestern.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=6222&context=jclc


Cite this Document:
Copy Bibliography Citation

Related Documents

Criminal Justice Field Define What
Words: 4874 Length: 15 Document Type: Research Paper

In the experimental community, the researchers instituted a media campaign to increase seat-belt usage, followed by increased police enforcement of the seat-belt law. It was found that the percentage of drivers using seat belts increased in the experimental community but remained stable or declined slightly in the comparison community (Piquero and Piquero, 2002). An example of the before-and-after design would be the analysis of the impact of the Massachusetts Bartley-Fox

Supervision in the Criminal Justice Field
Words: 2908 Length: 10 Document Type: Research Paper

Supervision in the Criminal Justice Field Mentoring inmates Problems and challenges facing a criminal justice organization Supervision in the criminal justice system is an integral aspect of the inmate rehabilitation process. In this paper, we conduct an intensive investigation and examination of the supervisory problems as well as challenges that are unique to the criminal justice organizations. In our analysis, we provide the details of general supervision, management, leadership, personnel evaluation, motivation, mentoring

Criminal Justice Management Policing Matrix
Words: 1341 Length: 3 Document Type: Essay

Rather, research findings should be available in a more condense manner, with options for greater detail provided for later review. Annual or semiannual journals could be disseminated that contain the latest research findings. This would make the process of reading and keeping up-to-date with research findings easier to do in the actual field and can be logged for use later in the creation of more specific strategies. Lum presents her

Research and Theory in Criminal Justice
Words: 633 Length: 2 Document Type: Essay

Criminal justice researchers are usually faced with numerous anecdotal data that is supported with relatively little to no empirical support. In order to effectively explore nuances of the issues that face the society with regards to law enforcement, criminal justice researchers tend to rely on empirical data, which is considered useful. The dependence on empirical data in criminal justice is evident in the fact that most of the existing criminology

Criminal Justice Department Has Been Asking Graduating
Words: 618 Length: 2 Document Type: Essay

Criminal Justice Department has been asking graduating seniors to take an exit exam as a measure of departmental learning outcomes. How could that tool be used to determine if the criminal justice major is effective? Please assess, in detail, in the context of this week's chapter readings. An exit exam could indeed be extremely effective in assessing whether the criminal justice major is effective in a range of capacities. First

Research Methods and Design in Criminal Justice
Words: 1016 Length: 3 Document Type: Essay

Both qualitative and quantitative research methods have the potential to yield reliable, valid, and important information that can be used to inform public policy. Criminal justice researchers use a wide range of research methods, which vary depending on the research questions, the purpose of the study (applied versus pure research) and the overall paradigm and theoretical framework. Research can be used to validate or disprove an existing theory, alter or

Sign Up for Unlimited Study Help

Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.

Get Started Now