Frdous Yagoub

Professor. Said

Writing as Inquiry

November 30, 2021

Lack of Communication in policing

The police are the first contact and entryway with the criminal justice system and the

public. Today the police are being called for simply any social issues that is not associated with

law enforcement or order and peace Maintenace. In order for police officers to fulfill their duties

they must be able to communicate efficiently with people. However, most police officer has

never being through the training that focuses on enhancing their communication skills, and how

to deescalate situations through speaking. The lack of clear and effective communication

between the police and the public, developed mistrust and a lack of transparency between the

two groups, this have resulted in a division that effects police interaction and the way tin which

they handle situations.

One of the causes of lack of trust between law enforcement and the community is fueled

by police excessive use of force that’s widely viewed as unfair, or just community violence in

general. This important because understanding that when communities don’t trust the police and

are afraid of them, this causes them to not cooperate when being questioned for important

information regarding a crime or an act that violates the law. The community begin to feel that

they should not communicate with law enforcement since they are not being transparent when

delivering the news, they feel that they are getting filtered information with missing links.
 I conducted primary research that targets TCU Black and minority students, and it also it

looks at other ethnic groups and White student population. I created two surveys that take into

consideration who are the people taking the surveys, and what kind of encounters that had when

it comes to communicating with the police. Black students were the highest number at 26 out of

32 Black students that took the survey to say that the police have communicated informally with

them. In one of the students respond he said that “I was once pulled over by the police in

Arlington, Texas for over speeding, the officer wasn’t speaking to me in a manner that was

acceptable he was calling me ‘dude’ instead of sir or by my name. He also tried to keep his

conversation with me as minimal as possible.” This could me that the police are not only poor

communicators, but also bias when communicating to individuals based on their ethnicities.

However, the officer way of communicating could be translated that they might be trying to

speak as minimally as possible to avoid saying something that could be misunderstood as races

or discriminatory, but in most cases, officers are trained to be able to communicate and engage in

conversations during stops or interactions. It’s less about what they say and more of how they

say it, and that’s what makes the difference in what people think of their conversations with

police officers. “A study from the American Psychological Association finds that police officers

exhibit less warmth and respect in their voices when talking to Black drivers than they do with

White drivers.” (Kaur, 2021) The purpose of this research was to pick up on racial disparities in

more subtle aspects of communication, it also shows that some officers are polite when engaging

in conversations with people during interactions.

Looking into this survey research, it has shown that a number of students have being

through experiences and encounters with the police where they have felt that it should of went in

a different direction. A student name Bellange have said that “I moved from my country only
knowing how to speak French and can only say a few words in English my family had issues

with the neighbor across from us, we called the police in, but to keep in mind we didn’t know

how to speak fluent English. The officer that was handling our call was very impatient and didn’t

how to well communicate, but the female officer that was there along with him was able to cool

down the problem and speak to our neighbor” (Sangith, 2021)

This survey in which Bellange talked about her families' personal experiences with the

police, and how poorly they communicated with them. Proofs how essential it’s to be able to

communicate in the professional field with a variety of people. This encounter could be

explained in two ways that the officers had some bias toward them, or he just wasn’t able to put

down a strategic way to speak to someone how might not be able to put their words in the best

way possible to cooperate with the officers, this lack of understanding and communication have

created a huge gap for Bellange and her family in the way to perceive authority figures. She said

that her family now will rather deal with any issues themselves, instead of calling for help

because they believe that it will only generate worse issues between them and the police and it

will be harder to diffuse. This shows that “they do not recognize how police communication with

residents can continually reproduce an asymmetrical power relationship between the two.”

(Kluewer, 2017)

Another cause for police officers not being able to actively communicate is their body

language. As we all know that police officers must take certain measures to protect themselves

before anything, and one of the ways in which they achieve that is maintaining physical distance

between themselves and other people. Body language sends ques to members of the public that

the police doesn’t even trust them so why should they trust the police, mentioned by Nicole Papa
that “body language can create a communication barrier. A person with their head down, folded

arms or turning their back to you are all examples of body language that creates a wall from

communicating.” (Papa, 2019)

Many police officers are taught tactical communication skills and set of strategies that

helps them lessen the severity of the situation and finding out the root cause of a problem.

Learning how to talk your way out of conflicts is one of the most crucial parts of being qualified

or labeled as a good or bad police. Also, it is part of communicating with a diverse group of

people such as witnesses, suspects, community members, service agencies, and lastly other

members of the law enforcement. In an article by the University of San Diego it was mentioned

that "in order for officers to effectively communicate with their community, earn their trust and

get citizens to cooperate with their instructions” (Fritsvold, 2020) This shows that the majority of

police officers undergo training in their academies or later years, nonetheless, they will somehow

manage to choose other routes to approach a problem. This only causes a rise in communication

between the public and the law enforcement.

Being a good communicator in the field of policing is very important in being capable to

accurately comprehend information that is given, and also to be able to pass on information to

the public in the best way possible. Not being able to communicate as a police officer can affect

members of the community. It can cause them to question the police ability to perform their

duties and to protect the public A lack of these vital communications skills results in poor

understanding, an officer not knowing how to proceed, and people who need police assistance

giving up. Officers must also consider how communication might affect a community’s reaction.

It is obvious that these traits are very important for optimal police work. Experiences show that

people react more calmly and cooperatively when police officers treat them well. Therefore,
good communication is needed in order to make the jobs of police officers easier and more

positive. (Barker, 2020)

In conclusion, it is very significant to understand that building trust with the community

is fundamental to building a better community but it all relies on efficient communication.

Recently, over the years building strong relationships of mutual trust between police

departments, and the communities they serve. This issue is critical because police depend heavily

on the cooperation of community members to provide information on crime in their

neighborhoods, and to work with the police to devise solutions to crime to crime and disorder

problems. This issue causes the community members willingness to trust the police depends on

whether they believe that police actions reflect community values, and incorporate the principles

of procedural justice and legitimacy. It is very important for officers to work on their

communication skills in order to be very transparent and gain the community's trust.

Works Cited

“Effective Communication and Police Officers.” Effective Communication and Police Officers -

1173 Words | 123 Help Me, https://www.123helpme.com/essay/Effective-

Communication-and-Police-Officers-293195.

Fritsvold, Erik, et al. “Police Communication Skills Matter More than Ever: Here's Why.”

University of San Diego, 8 Oct. 2020, https://onlinedegrees.sandiego.edu/police-

communication-important-today/.

Kaur, H. (2021, July 15). Police officers speak to black drivers with less respect than white
drivers, study finds. CNN. Retrieved November 29, 2021, from
https://www.cnn.com/2021/07/15/us/police-officers-tone-of-voice-racial-disparities-
trnd/index.html.
Overcoming Barriers to Communication between Police and ...

https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Stephen-Schneider-

3/publication/227286571_Overcoming_barriers_to_communication_between_police_an

d_socially_disadvantaged_neighbourhoods_A_critical_theory_of_community_policing/lin

ks/57cecfda08aed67897010bb7/Overcoming-barriers-to-communication-between-police- and-

socially-disadvantaged-neighbourhoods-A-critical-theory-of-community-policing.pdf.

Papa, Nicole. “Non-Verbal Barriers to Communication.” Bizfluent, 11 Feb. 2019,

https://bizfluent.com/list-6721900-non-verbal-barriers-communication.html.

Yagoub, Frdous. “Communication Encounter With Police Officers.” Survey, 7 Oct. 2021

1.I feel good about.... (think of the process that you used to create the draft, as well as the
product itself)
• Looking at the different ways that communication in the field of policing effect so many things,
and getting to look deeply at the causes and effects of this issue.
2.I’m not totally sure about....
• I looked at perdue owl, and different sources to see how to cite my personal primary sources
but I Struggled with the citation.

3.My specific questions for Dr. Said are.....

• How to tell if I'm writing more or less than I should about a certain part in paper
4.I think she’ll say.
• That I can do better in my next one!