Police officers’ views on cultivating organizational commitment

Abstract

Many studies over the past two decades have demonstrated that employees with low levels of organizational commitment (OC) tend to be less effective. Recent research has suggested that the OC levels of police officers in Australia and New Zealand are lower that the OC levels of police in other countries. In addition, more experienced officers (especially sergeants) have lower levels of OC than less experienced officers. Reports the results of a survey of Australian police officers’ views on improving commitment to the police organization. Overall, the officers suggested that OC could be enhanced if they received more support and encouragement from senior officers. Significantly, the supervisors in the sample were more likely to identify problems with the structure and processes of the organization, whereas nonsupervisors tended to identify personal issues. A major implication of these findings is that training and information programs for supervisors need to be revised and reinforced.