Abstract
Every now and then—albeit all too rarely—an academic book comes along that offers a new perspective and some impressive insights into our world. On policing, unfortunately, these books number under a few dozen. Caless’s Policing at the Top takes its place in this canonic bookshelf by delving into the hard-to-access top ranks of policing in England and Wales.
Following in the noble footsteps on Reiner’s (1991), Caless focuses on the upper echelons of policing (but draws on a wider group of ranks than did Reiner). An academic with professional experience in the police world, Caless interviews (and in a few cases receives written responses) 94 ranking police officers, representing an impressive 43% of the chief police officers. Judging from quoted responses, Caless’s questions are routine and nonthreatening inasmuch as they concern organizational behavior, leadership skills, crime-fighting philosophy, promotion qualifications, and work hours. Certainly Policing at the Top breaks no new ground methodologically. But it does not have to. Caless’s cooperative and empathetic style reveals far more insight and understanding of high-ranking police officers than would ever be gained from a purely observational or quantitative study. This is not a book about tactics but rather an understanding of organizational people.
The police officers, given their rank and career aspirations, not surprisingly come off as the career climbers they are. Mostly men, they describe their transition from “bobbies to bureaucrats” as they sometimes achieve a sense of professional satisfaction which, given their 70-plus hour working weeks, does not translate into their personal lives. What comes across is a strong intelligence (might I say closet-intellectualism?) one might be surprised to find among police brass, particular in other countries (particularly in mine). Of course, we cannot be sure because so little research has provided such insight into the world of top-ranking police officers elsewhere (though Reiner, 1991; Young, 1991, 1993; Punch, 2010; and even Vollmer, 1936 provide notable exceptions).
Caless makes clear he is interested in not just leadership, which he observes happens at all ranks, but command: how and why the bosses make the decisions they do. Of course the paranoia, infighting, and distrust of outsiders seemingly universal to organizations, police in particular, are well documented:
[The Home Office] forget[s] that policy isn’t policing. They’re all very well in their remote ivory tower, handing down writ to us but they don’t have to get fucked trying to make it work. Too many of them wake up with an idea and fly down to us from the Planet Loony the same day, without testing it, thinking about it or knowing whether or not it’ll work. (p. 161)
The quotes (all anonymous) Caless selects make fabulous reading (as police quotes often do), not just because of their wit but also because of the level of emotion and depth the interviewees display. Of note are the fears, doubts, and insecurities that seem endemic to ranking police officers in England and Wales. Unless this is a national character trait, one must assume it is the more beneficial result of a professional training system for promoted officers that forces police officers to face criticism and take part in a formal decision-making process that demands accountability and justification for all command decisions. It is difficult to imagine such access and self-reflection from high-ranking police officers elsewhere. Certainly, it would be inconceivable in my country own, which lacks both a “Bramshill” (the National Policing Improvement Agency) and any organization of substance equivalent to the Association of Chief Police Officers, from which Caless finds his sample.
Because of this, some of the observations and conclusions of Policing at the Top are more rooted in locale than Caless may realize. This is not a criticism so much as an observation. A helpful glossary is provided to explain police acronyms, but a basic knowledge of policing in the United Kingdom is advisable so one understands the unique historical relationship in England and Wales between police and public; the importance, at least in theory, of “policing with consent”; the dual local and national control of 40–some independent police departments; the history of amalgamation; and, at least compared to the United States, the more politically liberal and socially tolerant nature of police brass vis-à-vis society and the rank and file in general. Caless does not attempt to explain these factors nor, in his defense, should he have to. Regardless, there is much for any intelligent reader (or even a dumb Yank) to learn and enjoy.
The book is divided into six chapters related to promotion, retention, leadership, relations with police authorities, the exclusive nature of policing, and a look toward the future. Caless chooses to avoid focusing on timely issues so the book, as he tells us, does not quickly become dated. But Policing at the Top is, for better and worse, firmly rooted in the present. Caless, for instance, seems to support a unified national police force and lateral entry into higher ranks (though he faithfully presents the various opinions of his respondents). Because these issues could likely become just as dated as any current event, I wish Caless had embraced timeliness in the interest of providing an accurate snapshot of police today (and one would have loved to know the officers’ thoughts on the 2011 riots, had the book been researched and written a year later).
Caless’s access to the top ranks of policing more than justifies reading Policing at the Top. The accessibility of the writing opens the potential readership to students of all levels. Though the academic form may turn off the casual public, all readers will be rewarded with insight into policing, organization theory, and an understanding of police commanders who dedicate their workaholic lives to a proud tradition of public service.