SOC 3750 Chapter Notes - Chapter 8: Anomie, Biological Determinism, Cortisol

• School: University of Guelph
• Department: Sociology
• Course: SOC 3750
• Professor: Patrick Parnaby

Document Summary

In this exploratory study, we try to gain a better understanding of motivations for police dishonesty through in- depth, structured interviews of 10 members of an urban police department. Frameworks of interpretation: the officer responses elicited in this study can best be understood using two interpretive frameworks. The former includes statements of denial of responsibility, that is, accident; defeasibility (lack of a mental element); biological drives (or other fatalistic forces); and scapegoating (a response to the behaviour or attitudes of others. According to most officers interviewed, the internal discipline system does little to curb illegal police stops. Searches without probable cause: almost all the officers believe that it is sometimes necessary to conduct searches without probable cause. Arrests without probable cause: slightly more than half of the officers believe it is acceptable to conduct an arrest without probable cause. Planting evidence: most of the offi(cid:272)e(cid:396)s do(cid:374)(cid:859)t (cid:271)elie(cid:448)e it is (cid:374)e(cid:272)essa(cid:396)(cid:455) to pla(cid:374)t e(cid:448)ide(cid:374)(cid:272)e i(cid:374) a (cid:272)(cid:396)i(cid:373)i(cid:374)al i(cid:374)(cid:448)estigatio(cid:374).