Does politics matter? Cross‐national correlates of police strength

Abstract

PurposeThis paper aims to examine the political, social, and legal factors that shape the deployment of the police in a cross‐national sample of nations.Design/methodology/approachOrdinary least squares regression models are used to investigate police strength in 70 developing and developed nations.FindingsControlling for indicators of crime, development, and population‐geography, it is found that political factors such as durability of the political regime, corruption, the presence of a black market, and state formation are significantly associated with police strength. Inconsistent with expectations, however, it is found that there is not a significant relationship between indicators of criminal justice system priorities, such as incarceration rates or use of the death penalty, and police strength.Research limitations/implicationsA lack of indicators of property or violent crime for large samples of nations makes it difficult to discount the role of crime in the deployment of the police. Further, cross‐national studies are hampered by a lack of data about the use of private security to bolster the formal activities of the police, or the role of the military in regulating social order.Practical implicationsThis study builds on the theoretical knowledge of how the police are deployed. A better understanding of police strength can contribute to discussions about a global policing community. Implications for theories of policing and criminal justice system operations are also outlined.Originality/valueVery few cross‐national studies of criminal justice system operations have been conducted, and this study increases knowledge of global patterns of policing.