Measuring Officer Performance

New approaches for evaluating police officer knowledge and performance are required under the community policing and problem-solving approach. Traditional measurements of officer performance— for example, numbers of citations issued, arrests made, calls for service handled, and other such outputs—are not appropriate under this problem-oriented strategy that focuses on addressing neighborhood crime and disorder. Furthermore, agencies need to know if their officers possess the proper skills, are looking for underlying causes of crime, and are applying appropriate responses to crime and disorder issues. An effective performance measurement system is characterized by three fundamental purposes: (1) It conveys the organization’s philosophy; (2) It sets forth performance expectations; and (3) It facilitates the attainment of results. From a practical perspective, the fundamental goal of any measurement system is ...