Abstract
ABSTRACT Predictive policing generally refers to police work that utilises strategies, algorithmic technologies, and big data to generate near-future predictions about the people and places deemed likely to be involved in or experience crime. Claimed benefits of predictive policing centre on the technology’s ability to enable pre-emptive police work by automating police decisions. The goal is that officers will rely on computer software and smartphone applications to instruct them about where and who to police just as Uber drivers rely on similar technologies to instruct them about where to pick up passengers. Unfortunately, little is known about the experiences of the in-field users of predictive technologies. This article helps fill this gap by addressing the under researched area of how police officers engage with predictive technologies. As such, data is presented that outlines the findings of a qualitative study with UK police organisations involved in designing and trialing predictive policing software. Research findings show that many police officers have a detailed awareness of the limitations of predictive technologies, specifically those brought about by errors and biases in input data. This awareness has led many officers to develop a sceptical attitude towards predictive technologies and, in a few cases, these officers have expressed a reluctance to use predictive technologies. Based on these findings, this paper argues that claims about predictive software’s ability to neutralise the subjectivity of police work overlooks the ongoing struggles of the police officer to assert their agency and mediate the extent to which predictions will be trusted and utilised.
Highlights
Predictive policing generally refers to police work that utilises strategies, algorithmic technologies, and big data to generate near-future predictions about the people and places deemed likely to be involved in or experience crime
Rather than studying flaws in the production or governance of predictions, this paper aims to understand how predictions are considered, interpreted and operationalised by police officers charged with using predictive technology
This paper contributes to existing understandings of predictive policing by interrogating police uses of predictive technologies
Summary
Predictive policing generally refers to police work that utilises strategies, algorithmic technologies, and big data to generate near-future predictions about the people and places deemed likely to be involved in or experience crime. These predictions are not based upon the intuitions of detectives or the psychic abilities of clairvoyants as is depicted in Hollywood films. Claimed benefits of predictive policing centre on the technology’s ability to enable pre-emptive police work by automating police decisions This could reduce the overall harms of crime by facilitating early interventions while bringing efficiency gains during a time of austerity. Many police organisations in the United Kingdom (UK) have
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