Research Proposal Assignment Criminal Justice

Research Proposal

ISSUE: Increase in minorities hired in police departments and why this helps better understand the different communities within a patrol area.

EXPLANATION OF THE ISSUE AND ITS SIGNIFICANCE: Police departments across the country are hiring more minorities. The effectiveness of policing can be increased only through multicultural law enforcement agencies that understand and connect with the diverse issues in a community. Federal agencies are therefore encouraging the hiring of officers of color as well as female officer that make up significant percentage of the population. It is the view of experts and experienced police officers that relations between police and residents of a particular community can be improved through a force that racially and ethnically reflects the population. Moreover trust and communication between law enforcement and communities can be strengthened in an effective manner.

DESCRIPTION OF THE GENERAL AREA BEING STUDIED: Increase in the number of minority hires in law enforcement agencies

IMPORTANCE OF THE SPECIFIC AREA OF STUDY: Police diversity nationwide according to 2010 Census warrants the importance of examining the issue. Out of 282 cities with more than 100,000 residents, almost 82 have the widest gaps in the percentage of black law enforcement officers in the local workforce and the percentage of black residents. Among the top three cities in this category are Dayton (Ohio), Buffalo, and Detroit with gaps between the black population and black police being 43 and 6, 37 and 5, and 82 and 51 percent respectively (Kelly, 2015). For the Hispanic population, the disparity stands at more than 10 percentage points in at least 125 cities. This gap has not reduced; only widened or remained the same from 2000 to 2010. The study of increase in minorities hired in police departments is important, because this will help the researcher examine the causes of disparity in hiring, the benefits of hiring more minorities,...