Impact of network ties on change in police agency practices

Abstract

PurposeOrganizational research has suggested that network ties influence adoption of innovations and other organizational behavior. This paper aims to study the impact of network ties on change in police agency practices in a sample of city and county police agencies for which Weiss provided data on informal communication ties between agency planners.Design/methodology/approachThe authors analyzed change in six agency practices from 1997 to 2000, as indicated in law enforcement management and administrative statistics (LEMAS) data, with a variable indicating whether an agency's network contact engaged in the practice.FindingsNetwork ties appeared to influence change in computer use for crime mapping, with change more likely when the agency and its network contact initially differed with respect to the practice. Statistically significant network influences were not found for change in the other practices (existence of a formal community policing plan, geographic assignment of detectives, encouragement of scanning, analysis, response, and assessment (SARA) problem‐solving, computer use for resource allocation, and patrol access to criminal histories).Research limitations/implicationsResults suggest that network ties may affect change in policing practices and innovation, but that this does not necessarily hold across all types of practices.Practical implicationsWith at least some evidence of network influences, results suggest that policymakers should attempt to take advantage of network structure when encouraging beneficial changes in agency practices.Originality/valueThis paper studies the impact of network ties on change in police agency practices in a sample of city and county police agencies.