The thin blue line : a psychometric evaluation of an instrument measuring police culture.

The field of law enforcement and the actions of officers have been the subject of research for decades. After the George Floyd murder in 2020, police scrutiny nationwide calls for police reform and defunding of the police began. While lessening the number of officers may seem like a solution, the majority of officers believe in justice for all and serving and protecting their communities. A more viable solution is to create an inclusive culture within the field of policing. Creating an inclusive culture with policing begins with a thorough analysis of the current culture and why the demographics of policing have been relatively stagnant for decades.

The purpose of this research was to validate the Three Aspects of Police Culture Model instrument as a valid way to measure police culture. After an expert review of the instrument, I disseminated the 60-item Likert instrument via an anonymous link to police officers in the United States. Of the 68 returned surveys, 50 were complete. Exploratory factor analysis confirmed the following four factors: interpersonal (9 items), inclusive (11 items), resilient (5 items), and situational (10 items) as the factors that influence police culture. While this did not confirm the same aspects as described by Werner Gowitzke (2019), this study supports the use of a modified Influences of Police Culture Model to measure the culture within law enforcement.

This research provides a foundation for police organizations and their executives to gather evidence-based data on the culture within their respective organizations. The implications of this research will allow for future research studies to align with this one, giving law enforcement a clearer picture of police culture overall. Future research can benefit from determining whether the organizational culture influences how officers interact with the community they serve and if those interactions impact recruitment and retention.