Cynicism in Police Officers: Correlates and Consequences

Date

2009-12

Authors

Kanode, Elizabeth

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Abstract

Cynicism in police officers is important to understand because of the potential impact on the department and the larger community. Police departments must identify characteristics associated with police cynicism to provide a higher level of service to their communities. It is often difficult to identify cynicism because of a reluctance to believe that it evolves from within police officers instead of outside departments. The purpose of this study is to identify personality characteristics that are linked to police cynicism. Officers are given a four-section survey about cynical attitudes, locus of control, beliefs in a just world and self-monitoring scores. The main findings from this study found that a officers’ locus of control and belief in a just world scores are correlated with cynicism. Additional research is needed with a larger sample size to ensure generalizability.

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Keywords

police, cynicism, personality and occupation, locus of control

Citation

Kanode, E. (2009). Cynicism in police officers: Correlates and consequences (Unpublished thesis). Texas State University-San Marcos, San Marcos, Texas.

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