A recent survey of 127 police officers and 109 security professionals in Michigan revealed interesting findings on the relationship between public law enforcement and private security.  Respondents’ views were ascertained on a range of topics which highlight the relationship.  The study focused on:

• General issues pertaining to working relations

• Suggested steps for improving relationships

• The future of relations between police and    security
 

Characteristics of the Respondents
The majority of respondents are Caucasian males between 35 and 54 years old who have worked in their present field for over 10 years (See Table 1).  About 68 percent of police and 49 percent of security respondents have associates’ or bachelors’ degrees.  However, 24 percent of security respondents and 4 percent of police officers hold masters’ degrees.   About 26 percent of police and 43 percent of security respondents have prior military experience.  Nearly two-thirds of all security respondents have prior law enforcement experience while 43 percent of police officers worked in the security field before joining law enforcement agencies.  Thirty-four percent of all security respondents had worked more than ten years in law enforcement while 34 percent of all police respondents reported less than five years of prior security experience.

Table 1: General Characteristics of Respondents

Specific Characteristics	Police (%) (N=127)	Security (%) (N=109)
Age    21-34    35-54    55 and over	32 68 --	6 77 17
Education    High School/GED    Some College, No Degree    Associate/College Degree    Master's Degree    Other	3 18 68 4 7	2 21 49 24 6
Ethnicity    African American    Caucasian    Other	5 91 4	6 94 --
Gender    Female    Male	10 90	7 93
Marital Status    Now Married    Divorced/Separated    Never Married	83 10 7	82 12 6
Military Experience    Yes    No    No Response	26 71 3	43 57 --
Years Working in Present Field    Less than 5 years    Five to 10 years    More than 10 years	6 21 72	6 18 77
Prior Experience in Police/Security Field    No Experience    Yes    No Response	56 43 1	35 64 1
If Yes,    Less than 5 years    Five to 10 years    More than 10 years	34 6 3	13 17 34

 

General Working Relationship Issues
Respondents were asked about their experiences and perceptions of various issues concerning working relationships between the two organizations.  They were asked to rank their responses to statements (a ranking of 5 signified strong agreement while 1 signified strong disagreement).  The mean scores for the responses are presented in Table 2.

Though the two groups responded similarly on various issues, they differed on some points.  One area of disagreement was the question of whether police and security professionals are equal partners in crime and order issues.  Security professionals were more likely to believe they were equal partners than were police officers.  Police officers were more likely than security professionals to rank the police/security relationship positively.  However, they were less willing to share information with security agencies.  Security professionals also felt that government sponsored training for security officers, and the resulting increase in professionalism, would greatly improve relations with police.  When individual respondents were asked whether police and security officers in general had positive opinions of each other, police tended to express a more positive view than did security officers.  Interestingly, however, when asked their personal view, security professionals perceived police officers more positively than police officers viewed security professionals.
 

Table 2:  Police/Security Perceptions of the Working Relationship: General Issues

Improving Relations
Respondents’ reactions to efforts to improve their relationship with each other are presented in Table 3.  Security professionals appear more optimistic and hopeful than police officers in evaluating various strategies for improved relations.  The strategies considered include, among others, improving interagency communications, creating joint databases, training exchanges, and conducting regular meetings of agency representatives.

On the Nature of Future Policing
The perceptions of police officers and security professionals on the future of policing are listed in Table 4; interesting differences in their views can be observed.  Both police and security professionals predicted greater cooperation between the two sectors in the future.  However, police officers believe policing will remain a state function, while security professionals are optimistic that they will emerge as a major policing body.  Further, security professionals are more likely to believe that joint police/security efforts will increase in the future and that the boundaries between private and public police will eventually vanish.
 

Table 3:  Police/Security Perceptions of the Working Relationship: Steps for Improvement

Table 4. Police/Security Perceptions on the Future of Policing

Summary
This study of police officers and security professionals in Michigan reveals several important findings.  First, police officers and security professionals believe relations between the organizations need to improve.  Security professionals strongly feel that government sponsored training is very important to upgrading the professional standards and quality of security officers.   Second, though police officers view security professionals as equal partners in crime prevention activities, they are not willing to share information with security agencies.  Third, security professionals perceive various strategies aimed at improving the working relationship between the two organizations more positively.  Finally, security professionals were optimistic about increased future cooperation between police and security and about the possibilities for a greater future role for security in policing activities.
 
 

For more information contact Mahesh Nalla, Ph.D. (e-mail: Mahesh.Nalla@ssc.msu.edu). or Merry Morash, Ph.D. (e-mail: 1649DAM@msu.edu) 560 Baker Hall, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan Ph. (517) 355-2197 Fax (517) 432-1787