Foundation of the Development and Functions of Police

Foundation of the development and functions of police
Name:
Institution:
Response to question 1
The political era of policing happened between 1840 and 1930 while the reform era of policing took place between 1930 and 1980. Second, the political era witnessed police officers seeking a good relationship with the community while, in the reform era, the relationship between the community and the police force worsened. That implies that in the political era, the police relied heavily on information from citizens to track criminal activities in the country. However, the regime suffered numerous setbacks because some community members deliberately refused to provide the relevant security information and instead collaborated with criminals (Oliver, 2015).
Third, in the political era police departments and their staff heavily relied on political influence to dictate their daily activities while, in the reform era, the police departments became independent and carried out their duties without consulting politicians in the country. In the political era functions and tactics used by police depended on the leadership style of the elected leaders hence officers in the police force would be recruited and promoted depending on their political loyalty in the country (Oliver, 2015). On the contrary in the reform era, the constitution separated the police force into different units and assigned each group specific tasks. That, therefore, meant that police recruitment relied on the ability of the officers to execute the functions specified in the Constitution.
The political era had limited technology and hence the police had to walk for long distances and develop good police-community relations to make their work easier. On the other hand, the reform era witnessed the use of technology in the police department to improve the efficiency of services (Oliver, 2015). The reform era witnessed a revolution where police officers began using fast police cars to patrol security in the country. Furthermore, adoption of technology changed the methods of communication in the police force and hence investigating criminal activities became easier.
Response to question 2
Resilience is one of the skills imparted to police trainees. Police work in a hostile environment where they face all forms of assaults from the criminals and the general public. The skill, therefore, enables police trainees to cope up with stressful situations so that they can face the hostile working environment with courage. Another skill imparted in police trainees is effective decision-making ability (Warners, 2015). Police officers have to make crucial decisions from time to time. For instance, they must decide whether to apprehend or not to apprehend traffic offenders in busy highways. They also have the task of deciding when to hold, release or charge suspects, since the decisions involved are hefty the police officer must develop the skill in the initial training stage.
Teamwork also forms part of the core competencies imparted to police trainees. Teamwork plays a significant role in police service as it makes coordination of police activities easier. Through teamwork, police officers can strategize on detecting crime and making arrests in the shortest time possible. ...