Comms & Ethics

Question 1

What is Police Legitimacy?

Answer 1

How the public will perceive the police as a legitimate authority and will be more likely to cooperate with police directives if the public believes in the fairness of the processes police use to make decisions and exercise authority.

Question 2

What is Procedural Justice?

Answer 2

How police legitimacy is established and focuses on the way police interact with the public, and how the nature of those interactions shapes the public’s view of the police.

Question 3

What are the 4 principles of Procedural Justice?

Answer 3

1. Voice – providing people with the opportunity to communicate their perspective as part of the
interaction with police.
2. Neutrality – basing your decision on facts rather than being influenced by individual beliefs or prejudices.
3. Respect – treating people with dignity and respect and the absence of impoliteness.
4. Trustworthiness – the individual’s perception that police are concerned about their well-being and are genuinely trying to do their best for them.

Question 4

What are the 4 theories of aggression?

Answer 4

1.Drive theory
2.Frustration-Aggression Hypothesis
3.Instinct theory
4. Four Stages of Conflict Development

Question 5

What is the drive theory?

Answer 5

Posits that something within the environment activates an internal drive that motivates someone to cause harm. Regarding the social conditions or determinants that elicit an aggression response, drive theory suggests these are:
• Frustration
• Direct provocation (verbal or physical)
• Exposure to violent models (modelling and imitating)
• Elevated arousal (group dynamics)
• Alcohol consumption (respond to provocations more strongly, increased likelihood of misinterpretation, low aggressors become more aggressive, and high aggressors even more so)
• Drug consumption

Question 6

What is the Frustration-Aggression Hypothesis?

Answer 6

• The person’s goal is blocked
• This creates frustration and anger
• Anger predisposes a person to behave aggressively
• Whether the person engages in violence will be determined by:
- Their prior history with similar situations (e.g., previous assault police offences in similar circumstances)
- Their interpretation of the event (e.g., whether they believe engaging in violence will benefit them, such as to avoid arrest)
- Their own individual coping style to frustration (i.e., engaging in violence is their standard go-to measure when frustrated)

Question 7

What is the Instinct theory?

Answer 7

• The everyday stresses of life build up in the human psyche (i.e., the forces in an individual that influence their thoughts and behaviour),
• If not released, the stress builds to a point of explosion, and
• The ‘explosion’ can come in the form of verbal or physical aggression.

Question 8

What are the four stages of conflict development?

Answer 8

• Incident Level
• Misunderstanding Level • Tension Level
• Crisis Level

Question 9

What is Process Corruption?

Answer 9

Actions being done for some form of personal gain or advantage. e.g. planting evidence at a
crime scene to have someone locked up as revenge.

Question 10

What is Noble Cause Corruption?

Answer 10

•Unlawful conduct done without any thought of personal gain.
•It is often justified as doing the wrong thing for the 'right' reason.

Question 11

What are the causes of corruption and moral vulnerability?

Answer 11

• The Sisyphean nature of policing: Policing can seem like a pointless exercise that is endless.
• Cynicism: Seeing the worst in people and their motives and expecting this from people.
• Moral ambiguity of policing methods: There are times when police have to deprive people of their liberty or use force on people. Outside of the policing world, these are things that you would not do to someone; being exposed to this on a regular basis through policing can make you 'desensitised' to these things.
• Moral corrosiveness of the job: Spending large amounts of time in situations that most people do not see and large amounts of time with those who are or have questionable morals themselves can over time have an effect
on a person.
• Conflicts of interest: could tempt an officer to act in their own personal interest rather than the public interest.
• Groupthink: If others are doing it, it may seem okay.
• Slippery slope argument: Doing something small at first. Then it becomes normal, so the next small step is taken. Over time, each small step adds up.
• Small change tolerance: taking a small step that seems mostly okay to you but is unacceptable, only to gradually take increasingly less acceptable steps that you adjust to and consider to be tolerable. • Unfair distribution argument: Providing unequal services. e.g. spending more time at a takeaway restaurant that offers police discounts.

Question 12

What is a stereotype?

Answer 12

• A widely held belief about a certain social group or a type of individual based on prior
assumptions.
• Can also be based on popular cultural depictions of groups of people or deeply held beliefs
passed down through generations.
• They are not always negative.

Question 13

What is prejudice?

Answer 13

• A negative opinion or feeling formed beforehand or without knowledge, thought, or reason.
• Is always negative.

Question 14

What does the SELF test stand for?

Answer 14

•Scrutiny: Would your decision withstand scrutiny by the community and the NSWPF?
•Ethical: Is your decision ethical and consistent with the Statement of Values, Oath of Office and Code of Conduct and Ethics?
•Lawful: Does your decision comply with all laws, regulations and policies?
•Fair: Is your decision fair to your colleagues, community and family?

Question 15

What are the 8 Statement of Values?

Answer 15

1. Places integrity above all
2. Upholds the rule of law
3. Preserves the rights and freedoms of individuals
4. Seeks to improve the quality of life by community involvement in policing
5. Strives for citizen and police personal satisfaction
6. Capitalises on the wealth of Human Resources
7. Makes efficient and economical use of public resources, and
8. Ensures that authority is exercised responsibly

Question 16

What are the 10 Code of Conduct and Ethics?

Answer 16

1. behave honestly and in a way that upholds the values and the good reputation of the NSW Police Force whether on or off duty
2. act with care and diligence when on duty
3. know and comply with all policies, procedures and guidelines that relate to their duties
4. treat everyone with respect, courtesy and fairness
5. comply with any lawful and reasonable direction given by someone in the NSW Police Force who has authority to give the direction
6. comply with the law whether on or off duty
7. take reasonable steps to avoid conflicts of interest, report those that can not be avoided, and co-operate in their management
8. only access, use and/or disclose confidential information if required by their duties and allowed by NSW Police Force policy
9. not make improper use of their position or NSW Police Force information or resources
10. report misconduct of other NSW Police Force employees.

Question 17

Steps to dealing with a difficult customer:

Answer 17

•Identifying a difficult customer
•Recognise problems and address them
•Meet organisational expectations
•Take pride
•Always be accountable

Question 18

What is the process of a phone call enquiry?

Answer 18

•Clearly identify your name, business unit and offer a greeting.
•Use a personal approach and treat the customer as you would expect to be treated yourself.
•Try to understand their concerns. If they’re unreasonable, clarify the issues and make clear to the customer what can actually be done.
•Encourage customer confidence and actively address their concerns, even if you’re not the officer in charge of the enquiry.
•If you’re not the best person to address the customer’s call, ascertain who is and facilitate the contact.

Question 19

What are the key actions of Front counter enquiries/First point of contact?

Answer 19

•Ensure victims receive an event number and a victim’s card
•Use interpreter or disability services, where appropriate
•Ensure initial victim follow-up occurs within seven days and that all ongoing follow-up complies with the Charter of Victim’s Rights
•Try to resolve the customer’s matter at the first point of contact. Greet the customer at the counter in a professional and courteous manner
•Make them feel welcome at your workplace. Introduce yourself and put them at ease
•Use a personal approach and treat the customer as you would expect to be treated yourself
•Your responsibility is to serve and protect. That should be reflected in your tone and manner
•People with a disability may have difficulty with access or communication, so be flexible to their needs

Question 20

How to respond to a front counter enquiry?

Answer 20

Listen and respond to the customer’s needs
Try to understand their concerns and, where appropriate, use your skills and knowledge to provide a solution
Promote their confidence in the NSW Police Force as a professional and flexible service provider
People from culturally and linguistically diverse
(CALD) communities may face additional challenges
in communicating their issues to police. Actively seek assistance and support via interpreter services, multicultural community liaison officers or the CLAS recipient list
For hearing or speech impaired customers, consider Community Relation Commission/Auslan sign interpreters
Work with the customer to produce an outcome
You are a leader in the community and customers look to you for advice, support and guidance