Dancing with the devil? Participatory action research with police in South Africa

Abstract

At the present moment, major changes are being proposed to the way that policing should be done in South Africa. These changes do not seem to be informed by any research agenda or by a long term strategic approach aimed at 'smarter policing'. This paper reflects on the possible partnerships that (academic) researchers and police could form with the shared objective of bring about change in police organisations. These collaborative research arrangements are undoubtedly difficult. Police and academic researchers continue to operate in silos and the two groups have distinctive institutional cultures, which are sometimes at odds with one another. However, as this paper tries to demonstrate, collaborative research is possible. This article is in many ways a personal reflection on my own research collaborations with the police using a participatory action research approach.

Developing and Maintaining Police-Researcher Partnerships to Facilitate Research Use

“…Because many of the oversight bodies have coercive investigative powers, can require cooperation from police agencies, and many use seconded police officers to assist in their efforts, police managers can develop tension, a dislike and distrust of research, as the methods can be foisted on them and the findings are often critical of the functions they perform (see Laycock 2001). While this type of investigation is not the type chosen or preferred by academic researchers, it may explain why some refer to police research as problematic or "Dancing with the Devil" (Marks 2009) or "Dialogue with the Deaf" (MacDonald 1986, cited in Bradley andNixon 2009).…”

“…As a result, they advocate for improving interactive partnerships that respect the knowledge both communities have to offer when identifying and developing responses to issues. In sum, they favor a participatory action research approach (also see Marks 2009;Wood et al 2008).…”