Changing a police culture of corruption: Implications for the police psychologist

Abstract

The majority of police cadets, upon being sworn in and becoming rookie officers, enter their law enforcement organization and actively seek connections that they hope will be fulfilling and meaningful as well as provide a sense of belonging, security, honesty, mutual understanding, and trust. They strive to be the best that they can be. To the extent that healthy relationships form, the individual officer moves closer towards achieving a sense of wellness and a sense of personal wholeness that typically translates into optimum commitment to and performance on the job. However, to the extent that relationships are embedded in a culture of corruption and meta-pathologies such as dishonesty, an officer's sense of well-being will forever fall short of achieving wholeness and less than optimum performance will be achieved. As the culture continues to become increasingly more toxic, the individual's performance will continue to decline (Trott, 1996, Yerly, 2000).