Police officers’ experiences as victims of hate crime
Policing: An International Journal
ISSN: 1363-951X
Article publication date: 13 April 2018
Issue publication date: 26 July 2018
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to fill a research and literature gap by examining the nature and impact of hate crime victimisation on police officers, and their responses to it. The research explores victimisation due to the occupational stigma of policing and the personal characteristics and identities of individual officers.
Design/methodology/approach
The research design is qualitative, based on 20 in-depth interviews with police officers in one English police force. Thematic analysis was applied to the data.
Findings
All participants had experienced hate crime arising from their occupational or personal identities. Initially shocked, officers became desensitized and responded in different ways. These include tolerating and accepting hate crime but also challenging it through communication and the force of law.
Research limitations/implications
This research is based on a small sample. It does not claim to be representative but it is exploratory, aiming to stimulate debate and further research on a contemporary policing issue.
Practical implications
If further research works were to confirm these findings, there are implications for police training, officer welfare and support, supervision and leadership.
Originality/value
The police occupy a problematic position within hate crime literature and UK legislation. This paper opens up debate on an under-researched area and presents the first published study of the hate crime experiences of police officers.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
The authors are grateful to the anonymised police force and its participating members who made the research possible. Rob Mawby would like to thank the University of Leicester’s Criminology Department for allowing Rob research leave during semester one 2015-2016.
Citation
Mawby, R.C. and Zempi, I. (2018), "Police officers’ experiences as victims of hate crime", Policing: An International Journal, Vol. 41 No. 5, pp. 526-538. https://doi.org/10.1108/PIJPSM-12-2016-0176
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2018, Emerald Publishing Limited