Organizational Ethics

Organizational Ethics

ETH 315

March 26, 2015

Mr. Willie Larry

Abstract

Police integrity and ethics are essential to effective policing and it helps build trust within the public. Sound behavior by police increases community interactions, enhances communication, and promotes shared responsibility for addressing wrongdoing and chaos. The trust of the public is key to a police department communicating with the citizens it protects. A big setback would be if the public had little to no trust in its police department. The lack of organizational ethics within the department will hurt everyone.    

Organizational Ethics

Police departments can repair and strengthen public affairs by understanding and training officers on three key concepts: procedural justice, bias reduction, and racial understanding. Together and when applied, these concepts create an atmosphere in which effective trust between the police and citizens can flourish. The police department seeks to provide these critical resources to ensure integrity and ethics are well-understood and inserted in the culture of policing. One of the most difficult things for police officer to contend with is the knowledge of illegal or at least objectionable activity within the police department or by police officers of the department. The correct thing to do would be to report the misconduct, but doing so is regarded as betrayal by some police officers, and can be a career-killer. Whistleblowers seldom prosper. 

External Social Pressures

Pressure for a change in the police department often will come from an external source in response to issues between the police and the general public. These issues can be as simple as the public wanting an officer to patrol the high schools at the end of the day. Other issues could be a plea for change due to criminal problems, while some would want to discuss integrity and corruption within the department. However, police departments could be confronted by well-resourced groups that may apply lots of pressure to get answers. Some top department administrators will seem to listen attentively as community leaders and members vent their concerns over police versus the public issues. The community will always wonder if their concerns are ignored and the request are pushed to the side. The only way a police department can gain the public trust, is to honor their promises.

Organizational and Personal Decisions

In the police department, organizational managers are the key decision makers. Managers being individuals have the same qualities as individual decision makers. They however will change these features in light of the organization in which they exercise their decisions. Perhaps the key distinction between individual and organizational decision making is that whereas individuals are focused on self-actualization, managers in organizations must eschew self-satisfaction for the accomplishment of organizational objectives. Organizations have the ability to incorporate a wide array of decision rules in the search process. These can run from simple rule of thumb applications for simpler decisions to complex decision making. Individuals are biased towards the decision making process. This process is one in which another possibility are reduced through elimination.