Faculty of Science and Technology

This presentation provides an overview of the problem of contemporary police misconduct, with a particular focus on Australia and the UK.

Covering a variety of studies, the presentation will highlight methodological issues in researching police misconduct as well as the findings of research that, presented together, provide a picture of the problem, its causes, and possible solutions. The presentation will begin with an overview of current and emerging issues and the problems that misconduct (and potential scandals) can cause for modern policing. Social and organisational psychology, and criminological theories, are provided to present a framework for discussing the causes of police misconduct. Attempts to measure misconduct are discussed and a typology of misconduct cases provides insight into who might be involved in what and why. This leads to current responses and approaches to misconduct prevention, with a focus on both law enforcement agencies and the concept of external 'oversight'.

Dr Louise Porter is a Senior Research Fellow in the Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence in Policing and Security (CEPS) where she has worked for the past five years in the area of police integrity. Louise is a British Psychological Society Chartered Psychologist and formerly a Lecturer in Forensic Psychology at the University of Liverpool in the UK. Her research applies social psychology to crime-related contexts. This has included violent interactions such as rape, robbery, firearms offences and terrorism, and, more recently, policing contexts such as the use of force and deaths in custody. Her work on police corruption and misconduct extends this to look at the wider oversight and anti-corruption systems that are in place to counter influences on police misconduct.