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An Inquiry Into the Experiences of Female Police Officers and Their Decisions to Pursue Promotion" (2016)

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An Inquiry Into the Experiences of Female Police Officers and Their Decisions to Pursue Promotion Western Michigan University ScholarWorks at WMU Dissertations Graduate College 6-2016 To Promote or Not to Promote: An Inquiry into the Experiences of Female Police Officers and their Decisionso t Pursue Promotion Kristin Poleski Western Michigan University Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/dissertations Part of the Defense and Security Studies Commons, Gender and Sexuality Commons, and the Law Enforcement and Corrections Commons Recommended Citation Poleski, Kristin, "To Promote or Not to Promote: An Inquiry into the Experiences of Female Police Officers and their Decisions to Pursue Promotion" (2016). Dissertations. 1603. https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/dissertations/1603 This Dissertation-Open Access is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate College at ScholarWorks at WMU. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks at WMU. For more information, please contact [email protected]. TO PROMOTE OR NOT TO PROMOTE: AN INQUIRY INTO THE EXPERIENCES OF FEMALE POLICE OFFICERS AND THEIR DECISIONS TO PURSUE PROMOTION by Kristin Poleski A dissertation submitted to the Graduate College in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy School of Public Affairs and Administration Western Michigan University June 2016 Doctoral Committee: Barbara Liggett, Ed.D., Chair James Visser, Ph.D. Zoann Snyder, Ph.D. TO PROMOTE OR NOT TO PROMOTE: AN INQUIRY INTO THE EXPERIENCES OF FEMALE POLICE OFFICERS AND THEIR DECISIONS TO PURSUE PROMOTION Kristin Poleski, Ph.D. Western Michigan University, 2016 Despite an increase in the number of female police officers in U.S. police agencies, female representation in supervisory (sergeant and lieutenant) and command (captain, assistant chief and chief) positions in most agencies is limited. This research study focuses on the promotional aspirations as an explanation of limited female representation with attention to the decision-making criteria female police officers use when deciding to participate in the promotional process. This study also examines the institutional, political, organizational structures, and/or personal factors which may impact the female police officers’ decisions to participate in the promotion process. And, this study examines a factor mentioned but not researched by Archbold and Hassell (2009) of how being married to a fellow police officer (or part of a “cop couple”) can restrict the upward mobility of female police officers. Prior studies of promotional aspirations of female police officers as an explanation of the limited representation in supervisory and command positions were limited to one police department for each study. This study expands the scope of promotional aspirations and other factors with inquiries sent to 135 local police agencies with 14, 299 sworn officers in the Great Lakes region of the United States. Of the 14, 299 sworn officers, 1,658 are female. Twenty-one of the 135 agencies with 451 sworn female officers responded to the inquiry (15.5% response rate). Twenty-seven of the 451 (6% response rate) female police officers who met the eligibility requirements for promotion participated in the semi-structured interviews, utilizing a questionnaire modified from a questionnaire by Archbold and Hassell (2009). Interview data were analyzed by the primary researcher and a secondary researcher without law enforcement experience to identify primary dimensions with supporting conceptual categories and properties. Findings of this dissertation study revealed the primary factors female police officers use deciding whether or not to pursue promotion were shift assignment, duty assignment and the impact on children/family life. Limitations of the study were the small sample size and limited region of the country calling for caution when generalizing of findings. Additionally, there was disproportionate representation from each of the five states. Although each state was represented by a female officer, some states only had one officer represent it while others (such as Wisconsin-13 and Michigan-9) had multiple representatives. By identifying factors female police officers utilize when deciding whether or not to pursue promotion, the researcher was able to make recommendations for potential administrative changes which may encourage more female police officers to pursue promotion. Copyright by Kristin Poleski 2016 DEDICATION This research is dedicated to the women in law enforcement with whom I served and who are serving today. My hope is this study will help to inspire change in law enforcement agencies to facilitate the upward mobility of female police officers. “The wicked flee when no man pursueth: but the righteous are as bold as a lion.” Proverbs 28:1 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS First and foremost, I’d like to thank the women in law enforcement who took time out of their busy schedules to share their experiences with me. I was overwhelmed by your enthusiasm and generosity in assisting in this endeavor and this research would not have been possible without your assistance. I was humbled by your gratitude for undertaking this project and telling me I was a voice for the many dedicated and hard working women in law enforcement. I want to thank my wonderful husband, Larry Poleski, for his unwavering support and encouragement throughout this journey. He was my calm and provided balance when things got overwhelming, the sounding board for my ideas and my cheerleader every step of the way. Your patience and understanding were infinite and I love you with all my heart! I also want to thank my daughter, Nicole Youngs, my Mother-in-law and Father- in-law, June and Earl Poleski, the rest of the Poleski family and my dear friends who supported me throughout this process. I am so grateful for you always checking to see how I was coming along and your words of encouragement. I want to say a special thank you to my mentor, former co-worker and my dear, dear friend Pam Carrier. You forged the way in our profession when women were still relatively new and you made it easier for those of us who followed in your footsteps. You were the kind of officer and person I aspired to be. You were not only my colleague and role model, but you are a special friend. You encouraged me, listened to me, corrected me if I needed it, and several times provided a shoulder to cry on. I will be ii Acknowledgments—Continued forever grateful to you for your support, encouragement, and friendship and you will always hold a special place in my heart. I’m thankful for the assistance of Dr. Carol Archbold and Dr. Dorothy Schultz whose research provided the foundation for this study. Their willingness to share their interview questions, insight and experiences were extremely helpful. Additionally, I’d like to thank Dr. Bonnie Wright who served as a data coder. I truly appreciate your willingness to give your time despite your busy schedule to assist with this project. Your perspectives and insight were invaluable. Thank you also to Dr. Marianne DiPierro of the Graduate Center for your assistance in guiding me at the outset of the dissertation process. Finally, thank you to my dissertation committee, Dr. Barbara Liggett, dissertation committee chair, Dr. James Visser, and Dr. ZoAnn Snyder. I am so very grateful for your generosity, time spent providing feedback and seemingly unending patience as I navigated this process. Kristin Poleski iii TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ........................................................................................ ii LIST OF TABLES .................................................................................................... ix CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................ 1 Problem Statement .................................................................................... 5 Position Profile: Women Police Officers and Senior-Ranking Level Officers .................................................................................. 9 Global Similarity ............................................................................. 10 Underrepresentation of Women-Downward Spiraling .................... 12 Significance of the Research .................................................. 14 Research Questions ................................................................. 17 2. LITERATURE REVIEW ............................................................................. 19 The History of Women in Policing ........................................................... 19 Early Law Enforcement Initiatives .................................................. 19 Political Era of Policing ................................................................... 20 Professional Era ............................................................................... 21 The Role of Women in Early Policing ............................................ 21 Theoretical Foundation ............................................................................. 25 Grounded Theory ............................................................................. 25 Decision Making Theory .......................................................................... 25 iv Table of Contents—Continued CHAPTER Tokenism .................................................................................................. 27 Visibility, Polarization and Assimilation ......................................... 33 Gender Roles
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