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Book part
Publication date: 10 June 2016

Massimiliano Mulone

The purpose of this chapter is to question the degree and the nature of legitimacy and force held by private security, and how this can affect the role private actors are playing…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this chapter is to question the degree and the nature of legitimacy and force held by private security, and how this can affect the role private actors are playing in the field of policing and in the governance of security.

Methodology/approach

We draw mainly on existing academic literature on private policing, as well as our own qualitative research conducted in Canada.

Findings

If private security personnel have undeniably less legitimacy and force than their public counterpart, two nuances should be brought: (1) there is a tendency toward a shrinking of the gap between both sectors; and (2) these shortcomings do not represent such a problem, considering that, first, private security actors are usually given specific legal powers (e.g., the landlord’s), and, second, they do not rely on legitimacy as much as the police do in order to do their job. That being said, as private security officers and companies are likely to become increasingly involved in traditional police functions (most notably patrolling the public space), their lack of legitimacy and legal powers could significantly impede their actions in the future.

Originality/value

This chapter brings nuances to the supposed lack of force and legitimacy that plague the private security industry. It also sheds light on some of the inner rationales that characterize the dynamics within public and private policing.

Details

The Politics of Policing: Between Force and Legitimacy
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78635-030-5

Keywords

Abstract

Details

Police Occupational Culture
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-0-85724-055-2

Article
Publication date: 19 August 2009

Mahesh K. Nalla, Joseph D. Johnson and Gorazd Meško

The purpose of this paper is to examine the nature of police‐security relationships in three different continents that are unique in their economic, political, and social culture…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the nature of police‐security relationships in three different continents that are unique in their economic, political, and social culture. These countries include a developed economy (USA), an emerging economy (South Korea), and a transitional economy (Slovenia). More specifically, it compares the views that private and public police personnel in a diverse set of countries hold about one another on various issues relating to their working relationships and their efforts to improve them.

Design/methodology/approach

Data for the paper came from 1,158 police and security officers from the USA, South Korea, and Slovenia. All three studies employed survey methodology. The English language instruments are translated into the Korean and Slovenian languages and both instruments are back translated from the respective languages into English to check for validity.

Findings

While the findings for all the three countries vary in terms of the degree of personnels' positive attitudes toward one another, the overall levels of support from security professionals toward police officers appear positive in all the three countries. Among the police, personnel from the USA relative to other countries appear to have the most progressive and accepting attitude toward security personnel's role as partners. The varying degree of differences between South Korea and Slovenia may be a reflection of the centralized police structures, cultural and historical characteristics, and variations in the levels of economic liberalization policies. Findings suggest that in all the three countries security personnel are trying to reach out to the police to play their part in community policing compared to the police reaching out to the private sector.

Research limitations/implications

There is a time lag in data collection (seven‐year period) as the data for this paper were not collected at one point in time in these countries. Despite this limitation, the use of many identical questions in surveys in all the three countries offers an opportunity for this comparative research.

Originality/value

Most research on police officers' job satisfaction has been done in relation to individual factors while ignoring the role of organizational culture and environmental factors. Further, this setting offers an opportunity to test if democratization of police organizations influences job satisfaction.

Details

Policing: An International Journal of Police Strategies & Management, vol. 32 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1363-951X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 19 August 2009

Andrej Sotlar

The purpose of this paper is to analyse the development of the private security sector in several former Yugoslav countries that have gone through difficult post‐conflict…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to analyse the development of the private security sector in several former Yugoslav countries that have gone through difficult post‐conflict reconstruction including the field of security.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper takes a qualitative approach to data collection that includes interviews with experts in the field of private security from several ex‐Yugoslav countries.

Findings

While much effort is invested in the rebuilding of new, democratic public police forces in post‐conflict societies, little attention is usually paid to non‐state providers of security, for example, private security industry. Private security could, potentially, be both a crucial additional stabilising factor in assuring security in post‐conflict environments and a cause of instability if it lacks legislative control, professionalism and ethical guidance. Hence, both the state and the police should support the private security industry in helping it to achieve legitimacy and, where appropriate, partner state bodies. A well‐regulated private security sector could also become a substantial employer of large numbers of demobilised combatants in post‐conflict societies. Analyses of private security sectors in several former Yugoslav countries that experienced conflict identify a number of potential advantages and challenges. On one hand, in those countries with appropriate legislation in this regard, private security is becoming a valuable additional provider of security, while on the other hand, even strict regulation has failed to prevent some private security companies maintaining links with paramilitary, political and organised crime groups. Legal regulation is a precondition for the stable development of private security in those countries focussed upon in this paper, and this is not possible without appropriate action regarding the training, integrity and ethical behaviour of private security officers.

Research limitations/implications

The results are limited to developments in ex‐Yugoslavia, and may not be easily generalized to other situations and venues.

Practical implications

This paper provides a useful source of information for security policy makers and security experts in post‐conflict societies.

Originality/value

This paper extends understanding of the development of private security in post‐conflict societies.

Details

Policing: An International Journal of Police Strategies & Management, vol. 32 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1363-951X

Keywords

Abstract

Details

Intelligence and State Surveillance in Modern Societies
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78769-171-1

Article
Publication date: 6 March 2009

Marc Alain and Chantal Crête

This paper aims to explore and document how the question of continuous training/education is presently being dealt with in the area of public services and private security

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Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to explore and document how the question of continuous training/education is presently being dealt with in the area of public services and private security providers and trying to assess best and wrong practices of discussions and negotiations regarding this same question.

Design/methodology/approach

This research relied on content analysis of all 65 working agreements that have been negotiated in both the police and the private sectors in the province of Quebec within the last few years. In‐depth interviews were also conducted among 91 representatives of both employers and employees in order to explore more deeply the different contexts into which negotiations and discussions took place about the question of continuous training/education provisions.

Findings

What clearly emerged from interviews conducted with police organization representatives, employees and employers alike, is that a confrontational attitude rather than a more collaborative standpoint is the norm in negotiations. There is, however, one element on which both parties agree – the idea that training must be of immediate relevance to the job. In this respect, police employers and employees are often united in their resistance to new and higher training standards imposed by governments and public sector professionals, who are often suspected of not knowing much about the “reality” of police work. Field interviews revealed that negotiations generally favor employers, while employee unions, when present, do their best to defend previously gained conditions, particularly those pertaining to seniority in determining who is eligible for training.

Practical implications

Having documented the limitations imposed by the confrontational approach that is still being used in negotiations and discussions on the object of continuous training/education in the area of both public and private security sectors, we propose, as a final remark, that both employers and employees should envision the possibility of exploring new discussion and negotiation modalities which rest on a more consensual approach. This could help to give training and education its true value in this sector in an ever changing and globalizing economy.

Originality/value

This exploratory study is the first one being conducted in Quebec's security sector about a question that is at the heart of the competition capacity in a fast changing economy; lessons learned through this research should help this sector to better its negotiation practices regarding training/education as well as other crucial elements of its social mandate.

Details

Policing: An International Journal of Police Strategies & Management, vol. 32 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1363-951X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 August 1995

Jack R. Greene, Thomas M. Seamon and Paul R. Levy

Gives historical background to the new interest in “showcasing” inner cities of the USA. Focuses on Philadelphia as an example of government‐business alliance. Notes the former…

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Abstract

Gives historical background to the new interest in “showcasing” inner cities of the USA. Focuses on Philadelphia as an example of government‐business alliance. Notes the former negative attitudes of public and private police toward each other and contrasts this with the growing understanding of their complementary roles.

Details

American Journal of Police, vol. 14 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0735-8547

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 January 2003

Guy P. Lander

The private placement is the principal alternative method of financing to an SEC registered offering. The private placement avoids registration under the Securities Act of 1933…

Abstract

The private placement is the principal alternative method of financing to an SEC registered offering. The private placement avoids registration under the Securities Act of 1933 (the “Securities Act”) with its concomitant costs and delays. It also avoids periodic reporting under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the “Exchange Act”) for foreign private issuers. Issuers frequently resell their private placement securities abroad or to other qualified institutional investors. The combination of statutory exemptions, Rule 144A, Regulation S, and other SEC initiatives enable issuers to take advantage of these benefits

Details

Journal of Investment Compliance, vol. 4 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1528-5812

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 January 2003

John H. Walsh

In the late 1990s, the market for private equity securities (hereinafter “private equity market”) was booming. From quarter to quarter, the number of venture capital deals and the…

548

Abstract

In the late 1990s, the market for private equity securities (hereinafter “private equity market”) was booming. From quarter to quarter, the number of venture capital deals and the amount invested rose dramatically. Certainly, much of this attention and excitement resulted from the extraordinary market gains experienced by some investors in private equity securities (hereinafter “private equities”). For example, in a book published in 2000, Randall E. Stross described a private equity investment that grew in value by 100,000 percent in less than two years. Today, the extraordinary gains of the late 1990s have subsided. Indeed, some commentators now describe market conditions as a “brutal hit.” The number of deals and the dollars invested are down, and as one commentator put it, there has been an “exodus of momentum investors.” Nonetheless, private equities remain an important alternative investment. Private equities also remain an important compliance area for broker‐dealers and investment advisers. This article reviews some of the compliance issues that could arise in the current environment. Specifically, it focuses on the types of issues that are likely to arise during an examination by the staff of the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC” or “Commission”). The article begins with a quick summary of the circumstances under which SEC examiners review broker‐dealers’ and investment advisers’ activities in the private equity market. Next it reviews recent SEC enforcement actions involving private equities and some of the compliance lessons that can be drawn from the cases. Finally, it discusses an examination initiative relating to private equities that the SEC currently has underway. It concludes that private equities remain an important compliance area and an important focus of the SEC’s examination program.

Details

Journal of Investment Compliance, vol. 4 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1528-5812

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 21 September 2015

Dae Woon Kim

The literature on the growth and regulations pertaining to private security has been largely confined to western countries, with very little published on other jurisdictions…

Abstract

Purpose

The literature on the growth and regulations pertaining to private security has been largely confined to western countries, with very little published on other jurisdictions including South Korea. The purpose of this paper is to provide a general account of the development of the South Korean industry and an assessment of regulation, covering the period from 1950 to the present day, and to explore areas of possible improvement in regulation.

Design/methodology/approach

A research synthesis method was utilised to identify and integrate qualitative materials on turning points and regulatory changes, with the addition of a gap analysis based on established concepts of best practice in industry regulation.

Findings

The security industry in South Korea has grown exponentially, worth over $2.7 billion per annum. Notwithstanding this, regulation evolved through piecemeal rather than comprehensive changes. The problem is similar to those found in many other countries. However, in South Korea, over-reliance on market mechanisms of regulation, combined with the government’s lukewarm stance on stimulating the non-public security sector, means that there are inadequate guarantees of baseline competence and integrity.

Practical implications

The study demonstrates the need for governments to be more proactive and consultative in regulating the burgeoning security industry, and move away from ad hoc responses to industry problems. Regulation should be comprehensive in covering all relevant operational aspects of security work that are reflective of a growth profile. Regulatory agencies should actively explore training programmes linked to career path development and professionalisation. Execution of regulatory enforcement should be independent from political or third-party influence. Regulators should be innovative in applying and evaluating research-based regulatory strategies.

Originality/value

The study provides a comprehensive overview of the South Korean security industry and regulatory issues, adding to a more international understanding of regulatory challenges in security.

Details

Journal of Criminological Research, Policy and Practice, vol. 1 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2056-3841

Keywords

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