Officer Opinion Research Articles

Trial by Cognitive Ordeal: Irrational Approaches to the Opinions of Investigators, Trial Integrity and Proof

This article suggests that lawyers and judges may not understand the effects of their rules and procedures upon the production of evidence and its evaluation in criminal trials and appeals. Focusing on case studies involving the opinions of police officers and other investigators, as well as experts, it explains how applicable rules, procedures and safeguards did not produce, and appear incapable of producing, the effects claimed by courts. Drawing on scientific research – on cognitive bias and voice and face comparison – the article demonstrates how judges have enabled investigators to express their biased and speculative opinions, treated investigators’ opinions as expert (or special) without evidence of validity or ability, and encouraged jurors to make their own voice and face comparisons in the highly suggestive context of the accusatorial criminal trial. Courts have placed great reliance on trial safeguards, such as cross‐examination and judicial directions, trivialised the difficulty of voice and image comparisons and overlooked the likelihood that juror interpretations will be incurably biased, and that the same evidence will be unwittingly counted more than once.

Child Sexual Abuse in Nigeria: Exploring Vulnerability and Prevention from a Policing Perspective

To date, literature on vulnerabilities of children and prevention of child sexual abuse (CSA) has relied on the contributions of child-care professionals, health practitioners, and other social workers, excluding police officers. The purpose of this study is to draw on the experiences and expert opinions of police officers in exploring the vulnerabilities of children to sexual abuse and prescribing preventive measures. Officers’ engagement is premised on their collaborative work with social service agents in improving responses to crimes of violence against children. This qualitative study was conducted with 24 police detectives of the sexual offenses units in the six zonal police commands of southwest Nigeria. From the thematic analysis of their narratives, findings indicated a link between socio-cultural and religious beliefs and children’s exposure to sexual abuse. Participants indicated believe that there is a growing number of men who are preferentially or solely sexually attracted to prepubescent females. In addressing CSA, participants suggested a specialist approach to policing CSA, abolition of child marriage, community engagement in CSA policing, and legal instrumentations to govern socio-cultural practices. The study invite research that triangulates the perspectives of parents, community elders, and religious leaders in communities where considerable incidents of CSA have been reported.

Composing a Standard for Electronic Chart Display and Information System Type Specific Training

Electronic Chart Display and Information System (ECDIS) training is accepted as extremely important for safety in modern navigation. At present, two types of training are required for deck officers. Operational use of ECDIS is mandatory training for deck officers and it is conducted according to the International Maritime Organization (IMO) Model course 1.27. This course provides general knowledge about ECDIS. Type specific training is indispensable for the officers to know all the capabilities, functions, and limitations of the ECDIS used onboard. The lack of regulations for this type of training allows the manufacturers of ECDIS to apply their own requirements. This can result in improper and insufficient training. Based on research of the opinion and experience of deck officers, the authors of the paper propose a model of a standard for type specific training.

Naczelnicy powiatów w Królestwie Polskim w opiniach funkcjonariuszy żandarmerii od 1867 r. do lat osiemdziesiątych XIX w.

Heads of counties in the Kingdom of Poland in the opinion of police officers from 1867 till the 1880s The article is devoted to the activity of individuals serving as heads of counties (poviats) in the Kingdom of Poland between 1867 and the late 1870s. It features assessments of the work of all officials holding the position in 1873 and some from 1874 carried out by officers of the Warsaw Police District on the basis of overt and undercover observations in those years. The assessment reports deal not only with the officials’ professional activities, but also their family life and political attitudes, and point to various factors and phenomena contributing to the shortcomings in their work. In addition, the reports feature a lot of information provided by police officers and concerning unlawful decisions and actions of the county heads. They also mention the scale of the phenomenon and the response of the central and provincial authorities of the Kingdom to various abuses of the heads of this administrative structure. Also featured in the article is information from employees working in the police department about irregularities in the implementation of the Russian policy in the Kingdom of Poland by several of them in their professional activities, as well as about cases of inappropriate cooperation between them and their associates, especially those responsible for police and military matters. In addition, the author of the article demonstrates — from the point of view of the police — the reasons why the heads of counties did not cooperate well with the police, and presents their demands and proposals for improving the work of the county heads. The last two topics addressed in the article concern the response of the authorities of the Kingdom to various lapses and irregularities in the work of county heads and the measures taken by the Warsaw governors to improve the county heads’ professional activities, strengthen their position within the administrative system and increase their remuneration and concessions.

Treaties for "offshoring" hospital treatment of Asian patients from Christmas Island, 1963-1985: a racist chapter in the history of Australian medical care.

Treaties for "offshoring" hospital treatment of Asian patients from Christmas Island, 1963-1985: a racist chapter in the history of Australian medical care.

The Results of the Police Reform: An «Inside View»

The paper presents the results of a study of the most important changes in the activities of the Department of Internal Affairs (Police Service) after the 2011 reform. The success of the implementation of the principles of openness and publicity of police activities, building trust between the police and society, improving the image of the Department of Internal Affairs is characterized, the intensification of information and propaganda work is noted. The opinion of police officers on the prevalence of illegal and illegal behavior among employees is analyzed. Noting the downward trend in the facts of such behavior, among its determinants, the author names more active detection of violations of official discipline and offenses. An important advantage of modern police activity is the introduction and development of electronic document management, improvement of the regulatory framework, tightening control over budget spending. An increase in the level of education of police officers is also recognized as a positive trend, but the active introduction of distance learning significantly reduces its quality. The system of medical and pension provision for employees of internal affairs bodies remains satisfactory. Among the main problems that reduce the effectiveness of the professional activities of police officers are excessive document flow, imperfection of legislation, weak material and technical base, poor interaction of departments and services among themselves, insufficient number of employees and their heavy workload. The latter, according to the employees of the internal affairs bodies, is the most serious factor, which is expressed in the inconsistency of the official load with the established norms, in the performance of official duties during the vacation period, in the unjustified distribution of official duties. The solution of the problems of organizing and carrying out the professional activities of police officers indicated in the paper is necessary for effective crime prevention and increasing the authority of the police in society.

Preparation of the Police in the Field of Counter-terrorism in Opinions of the Independent Counter-terrorist Sub-division of the Regional Police Headquarters in Cracow

The article explores the opinion of officers of Independent Counter-Terrorist Sub-Division of the Regional Police Headquarters in Cracow (ICTS RPH) on police counter-terrorism preparedness in Poland. In view of the many clandestine activities in the field of counter-terrorism, it was concluded that only the assessment of those involved in counter-terrorism can be reliable. It is assumed that only knowledge of the issue gives proper basis for reliable conclusions and recommendations. Therefore, the opinions of one of the sixteen ICTS RPH in Poland were chosen as the subject of the study. The research aim was to determine how officers evaluate the activities of the Police in the field of counter-terrorism in Poland, and what change(s) would they recommend? The study was conducted using the diagnostic survey method. The empirical research has a sample representing 96% of the surveyed population. The theoretical part locates ICTS RPH in the hierarchy of counter-terrorism authorities in Poland and explains it’s legal regulations. The structure of the ICTS RPH and selected aspects of its activities are also described in that section. Empirical studies have shown that officers bound the effectiveness of counterterrorism operations to the quality of training. They also made recommendations for changes to improve counter-terrorism operations.

외사 경찰의 국제공조수사 인식에 대한 탐색적 연구

This study aims at exploring the subjective perception of law enforcement practitioners who work in the field of foreign affairs and INTERPOL. In particular, the present study focuses on examining the perception of Korean police officers regarding the necessities and the ways of building international cooperation with foreign police officers. The numbers of dangerous criminals who had fled overseas have been dramatically increased in South Korea. International Criminal Police Organization(INTERPOL) refers to the international organization that supports worldwide partnerships of police in order to combat transnational crimes and arrest the offenders fleeing overseas. Numerous criminals who tried to flee overseas have committed various types of transnational crimes such as cyber crimes, trafficking in persons, and other organized crimes avoiding investigation of INTERPOL. Few studies have been conducted about the attitude and perception of policemen who work in the sectors of foreign affairs and INTERPOL in South Korea. The current study emphasized the significance of the perceptions of police officers about utility of INTERPOL for re-arresting criminals who fled overseas and subjective opinions of police officers about red notice for combating transnational crimes. Furthermore, this study concentrated on the comparative police cooperation strategies in terms of assigning the effectiveness of “KOREAN DESK Police Officers” regarded as Korean liaison officers who work in foreign countries. Data were drawn from the total number of 317 police who had participated in survey from 4, December to 7, December, 2020 with the support of Korean National Police Agency. Result demonstrated that specific training and education for police officers are required in the field of foreign affairs due to the lack of perception about non-red notice issues of INTERPOL and insufficient international cooperation systems with foreign police departments. Further policy implications will be discussed.

Banks During the Pandemic: A Japanese Perspective

In recent years, Japanese banks have revived their leading international role in the provision of global liquidity. Since the start of the pandemic of COVID-19, Japanese banks have increased their overseas lending at a much higher pace. This article looks at the activities of Japanese banks, and the drivers behind such a surge by considering factors that characterize the domestic economy. It is argued that uncertainties associated with COVID-19, and government response by means of introducing numerous unconventional measures to counter adverse effects of the pandemic, have increased cash hoarding in the economy. Japanese banks have seen a surge in the deposits held, as well as a decline in loans. Data from the Senior Loan Officer Opinion Survey on Bank Lending Practices at Large Japanese Banks reveals that the demand for loans from all size firms and households has declined since mid-2020. Faced with ongoing razor-thin margins and prolonged low interest rates at home, Japanese banks have continued their overseas activities in a search for yield; and they have increased their exposure to offshore financial centers which could have potential domestic financial stability implications.

A Study on the Effect of Police Officers Organizational Fairness Regulations and Power Distance Tendency on Organizational Effectiveness

Purpose: This study comprehensively identified which of the sub-Factor s of organizational fairness they per-ceived had a positive effect on organizational effectiveness. In addition, this study verified how power distance tendency, an individual characteristic variable, affects the relationship between their job satisfaction, organiza-tional commitment, and organizational citizenship behavior. Method: The scope and method of this study are as follows. First, the time range of the study ran from Decem-ber 1, 2020 until December 30, 2020, and the spatial range of the study was the Daegu Metropolitan Police Agency, 10 police stations affiliated, and 31 patrol divisions within the police station. Second, as for the method of the study, a reference study and an empirical study were concurrently conducted via a questionnaire survey. Results: The results of this study are as follows. First, it was found that the organizational fairness perceived by police officers had a significant positive effect on organizational effectiveness. Second, in the influence of power distance tendency on organizational effectiveness, it was found that the higher the power distance tendency, the more negative effect on job satisfaction, organizational commitment, and organizational citizenship behavior. Conclusion: The implications of this study are as follows. First, the establishment of a fair police organizational culture should precede. Second, in order to ensure that individual police officers have an active and positive attitude in enhancing organizational effectiveness, organizational efforts should be made to resolve complaints based on compensation results. Third, it is necessary to solve operational problems by receiving expert diagnoses on the operation of the performance-based pay system of the police organization and to actively collect and reflect the opinions of police officers who are subject to application.

Input from the frontlines: parole and probation officers’ perceptions of policies directed at those convicted of sexual offenses

Sex offender laws were designed to decrease sexual violence. The current mixed methods study examined attitudes and opinions of parole and probation officers who have supervised individuals convicted of sexual offenses (n = 361) regarding sex offender legislation and how these policies can be most effective in preventing recidivism. About half of the officers reported that registration and notification, sexually violent predator and Halloween laws were largely effective in preventing sexual victimization. Conversely, they perceived residence restriction laws and the tier system to be largely ineffective. A consistent theme that emerged from the qualitative responses was a movement away from blanket approaches towards a case-specific approach, tailoring the laws to individuals based upon their needs and risk level.

Investigating barriers to accident precursor reporting in East Azerbaijan Province Gas Company from the perspective of HSE officers: a qualitative study

Objectives. Investigating the root causes of under-reporting near misses is very important. The aim of this study was investigating barriers to near-miss reporting in East Azerbaijan Province Gas Company from the perspective of health, safety and environment (HSE) officers. Methods. Semi-structured individual interviews were used and 21 interviews were conducted with HSE officers. Inductive content analysis was used for analyzing interviews. After analyzing the interviews, the codes in the interviews were categorized. Results. In general, two categories of code were created: reasons for non-reporting of accident precursors; and suggested solutions to improve the reporting system of accident precursors. However, two main categories were found for not reporting: individual reasons such as lack of commitment to the job, lack of attention to social responsibility, forgetfulness and laches in reporting, etc.; and organizational reasons such as job instability among employees, lack of sufficient training, failure of the organization to provide feedback, etc. Conclusion. This study found that the opinions of people working in the organization can be very effective in promoting reporting, so any organization can choose the appropriate strategy to increase the number and quality of reports by examining the opinions of managers, HSE officers and workers in the organization.

Koncepcja rozwiązania modelowego dla systemu bezpieczeństwa publicznego dużej aglomeracji miejskiej

The subject of this study is to present the concept of a model solution for the public security system of monocentric and polycentric agglomeration. Taking into account the security conditions of a large urban agglomeration, one universal scheme of police organization has been adopted. Its func-tioning on the basis of specific forms and methods to some extent limits the autonomy of police chiefs in shaping safety in accordance with the specificity and internal social and organizational conditions of the agglomeration. Among the available research methods, the participatory observation method was used in particular. Nevertheless, the basic scientific method for obtaining empirical data was a diagnostic survey. Furthermore, the article presents the opinion of police officers on the transfer of solutions from the Warsaw agglomeration to other agglomerations in Poland. The author’s conceptual proposal of a model solution for the public safety system of a large urban agglomeration was presented.

Gender (in)equality in the labor market: a case study of Environmental Health Officers

Abstract The female gender has been discriminated, as it is considered inferior, in relation to the male. In the health sector, although the proportion of women has increased, the occupational segregation still persist. The mortality rate reduction, is largely due to the unrecognized contribution of women. Segregation manifests itself in a variety of ways, ranging from a limited set of opportunities to wage disparities. It's paradox since, even in “mostly female” jobs, like Environmental Health (EH), the minority of men usually have an “escalator”, reaching leadership quickly. This abstract addresses the gaps in the challenges of gender inequality in EH, since the fact that women are a health driver is been ignored. We seek to know the attitudes and opinions of the Environmental Health Officers (EHO), about: identity centralities; discrimination in society, profession and organization. This study is observational, descriptive, cross-sectional and level of knowledge II. The target population comprises by EHO (women and men). The sample design adopted was non-probabilistic and technical for convenience. The information was collected through a digital questionnaire. On average, men presented a more conservative view, compared to the female, associating women to mother's role and housewives, revealing a certain conservatism. There was, therefore, a prevalence of gender stereotypes. A correlation was found, about the organizational discrimination, since who revelead a minor difference between genders, were also those who presented a lower index of stereotypes. In other words, an organization that provides a life balance, leads its workers to desconstruct social and professional stereotypes. In conclusion, a gender diagnosis is essential to identify asymmetries and to start the change. This study identifies and analyzes inequalities in the EH area. Most of the results found follow the literature and are relevant to define future strategies. Key messages Global health organizations are starting to recognize the importance of gender challenges as a way to achieve universal health coverage which facilitates a new narrative. Recent data from the International Labor Organization estimate that gender pay gaps in the health sector are higher compared to other sectors, although women hold a large number of health jobs.

Penitentiary programs - possibilities and limitations in the opinion of penal officers - methodical guidelines

Correctional-penitentiary programs are nowadays a basis for the impact of social rehabilitation in penal institutions. The article presents the sense and assumptions of the creation and implementation of correctional programs, as well as some selected opinions of officers on the implementation and effectiveness of the programs. The final part of the article includes methodical and didactic guidelines.

Impacts of electronic monitoring on the community life: blessing or disguise?

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to identify and evaluate critically the impacts associated with the implementation of electronic monitoring (EM) of accused and convicted persons on society based on the foreign experience and compare these findings with the original research results on EM in the Slovak Republic.Design/methodology/approachThis paper elaborates the secondary data of previous researches in Scotland, Sweden and Florida in the USA. Secondary research is based on in-depth analysis of articles, reports and studies searched via database of Google, Scopus and Science Direct. Based on the studies processed by a causal and qualitative analysis, the authors identify the benefits and risks of EM influencing community life in Europe and the USA. The additional sources of secondary data are the Statistical Yearbook of Ministry of Justice of Slovak Republic, the content of the original law (including relevant amendments) that introduced EM into the Slovak criminal justice system and data on the application of EM in Slovakia provided by the Ministry of Justice. Subsequently, this paper presents the original research findings about the EM implementation in the Slovak Republic. The primary data were conducted via interviews with the representatives of Ministry of Justice, and through the national survey of opinions of judges, probation and mediation officers. The authors used the descriptive statistics and the statistical deduction methods.FindingsThe key finding of the paper is that there is a very narrow border between EM as blessing and disguise for community involved. Setting proper measures to protect the community, targeted communication and support with attendance of professionals (e.g. mediator and psychologist) for community members might help to avoid possible risks and support the benefits related with EM implementation, namely, social and economic inclusion of offenders, maintaining family and community tights, reducing recidivism or protection of sensitive sites.Practical implicationsTo support the acceptation of EM by local community, the authors recommend to perceive sensitively community involvement and consider potential risks related with EM implementation; to suggest the proper measures to protect the community; and to develop better or targeted communication oriented towards increasing awareness or establishment supporting groups with attendance of professionals (e.g. mediator and psychologist) that might help to avoid possible risks and support the benefits related with EM implementation.Originality/valueThis paper compares experience with EM based on the secondary data of previous researches in Scotland, Sweden and Florida in the USA. Subsequently, it presents the unique data about the implementation of EM in the Slovak Republic. The topic of EM is still vastly underrated in the literature, and there is a lack of empirical data, so this paper as a combination of case studies and original research could be very helpful in the efficient implementation of EM and setting the proper measures.

ФАКТОРЫ ВОСПИТАНИЯ ЛИЧНОГО СОСТАВА ПОДРАЗДЕЛЕНИЙ РОСГВАРДИИ

At present, the education of personnel of the Federal National Guard Troops Service in line with their professional activities plays an important role in maintaining the high combat readiness of the troops of the Russian Guard, as well as in successful completing service and combat missions for their intended purpose at a stated time. The paper studies the factors influencing the formation and development of professional attributes of personnel of the Federal National Guard Troops Service within the service and fighting activity. Based on the analysis of scientific literature, the author specifies three groups of factors influencing the training of servicemen and the staff of the Federal National Guard Troops Service: service-professional, environmental, and personal. The service-professional factors involve military (professional) training activities, performance of duties of combat service (on military duty), moral and psychological support, and other areas of service and combat activities. The environmental factors include the information environment, military personnel, family, friends, acquaintances, military rituals, wearing military uniforms, and military symbols. Personal factors reflect the intrapersonal level of mental activity of servicemen (employees) and imply motivation for self-improvement, the own activity of a person, and professional reflection. The author studied the opinions of officers regarding the importance of specified factors. The result showed the importance of all three groups of factors influencing the training of the RF National Guard personnel. According to the obtained data, the author concludes on the necessity to optimize the training process of the Russian Guard personnel by covering all areas of military professional activity.

Driver’s black box: a system for driver risk assessment using machine learning and fuzzy logic

Risky driving behaviors can cause accidents, which may result in major material and moral damages. Due to the increase in road accidents, it has become an important issue to identify risky driving behaviors and reward people who drive safely. With the development of technology, it is now possible to model driving behavior through advanced sensors integrated into embedded systems. In this study, we modeled four major risky driving behaviors and created driver profiles using data obtained from accelerometer and gyroscope sensors and applying widely used machine learning algorithms in behavior analysis, including the C4.5 Decision Tree, Random Forest, Artificial Neural Network, Support-Vector Machine, K-Nearest Neighbor, Naive Bayes, and K-Star algorithms. Risky driving behaviors and their risk levels were evaluated in accordance with the expert opinions of traffic officers, and driver risk was modeled using the fuzzy logic method. The applied machine learning algorithms were compared using common validation metrics such as accuracy, f-measure, precision, and recall. In our experiments, the K-Star algorithm was the most successful algorithm, with 100% accuracy. As a result, a highly accurate, low-cost system which acts as the driver’s black box was developed. The system can be integrated into vehicles and it can record the driver’s behaviors and identify the risky ones. It can also open up new horizons for insurance companies to utilize usage-based policies, in which customers who drive safely are rewarded with lower car insurance premiums, encouraging others to do the same.

An Aggregate View of Bank Lending Standards and Demand

The Senior Loan Officer Opinion Survey on Bank Lending Practices (SLOOS) provides information about the supply of, and demand for, bank credit in the United States on a quarterly basis. SLOOS responses are used internally by Federal Reserve staff in monitoring bank lending conditions and as an input into research and analysis about broader economic and financial conditions.

The real consequences of bank mortgage lending standards

We examine the real effects of changes in bank mortgage loan underwriting standards by combining responses to the Federal Reserve’s Senior Loan Officer Opinion Survey, application information from the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act, and local housing market measures over 1990 to 2013. Tightened standards are associated with a 1 percentage point increase in denial rates and a 5% fall in loan issuance, controlling for applicant pool changes, but no change for predominantly-securitizing banks. In areas with more exposure to banks that have tightened standards, mortgage delinquency rates, house prices, new home sales, and residential construction employment fall substantially.