Showing papers by "Cynthia Lum published in 2012"

Receptivity to Research in Policing

Abstract: Evidence-based policing—using research and scientific processes to inform police decisions—is a complex approach to policing that involves various challenges. One primary difficulty is how research...

Evidence-Based Counterterrorism Policy

Abstract: As we approach the tenth anniversary of the terror attacks on September 11th, one fact is clear among the many unknowns about terrorism: there has been an exponential increase in spending on counterterrorism measures. For the United States, this increase in spending is not just reflected in federal homeland security measures or military efforts in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Pakistan, but also among private individuals, corporations, and public entities at the municipal, county, regional, and state levels. Most recently, the killing of Osama Bin Laden by the United States has led to a renewed increase in resource allocation at home by local law enforcement agencies (van Natta, 2011). In the scientific fields, there has also been more funding for a variety of academic and technological research and development related to terrorism and counterterrorism.

Translational Criminology: Using Existing Evidence for Assessing TSA’s Comprehensive Security Strategy at Airports

Abstract: One of the recent developments in airport security has been the call for a more coordinated security apparatus. In 2009, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) revised and reimplemented its Comprehensive Strategy to Security at Airports, also known as “the Playbook,” to supplement and coordinate additional security at airports. The Playbook reflects the many everyday prevention and deterrence mechanisms to physically secure the airport environment, which are similar to other security measures used to prevent crime. Here, we use translational criminology concepts and tools to examine the Playbook in the context of evidence-based deterrence and prevention mechanisms. Overall, we find that the Playbook is in part supported by evidence-based crime prevention and deterrence principles. However, we also find areas where the Playbook needs further assessment, specifically in the areas of randomization and unpredictability, place-based focus, interagency cooperation, and implementation.

DRAFT ONLY - DO NOT REPRINT WITHOUT THE AUTHOR'S PERMISSION The final version will appear shortly in Justice, Research and Policy RECEPTIVITY TO RESEARCH IN POLICING

Abstract: Evidence-based policing—using research and scientific processes to inform police decisions—is a complex approach to policing that involves various challenges. One primary difficulty is how research can be translated into digestible and familiar forms for practitioners. A central part of successful translation is the receptivity of decision makers to research as well as how research is presented and packaged to increase receptivity. In this article we first discuss the complexity of evidence-based policing, highlighting the much-lamented gap between research and practice. We review research from other disciplines and also in policing about what contributes to research being better received and used by practitioners. We then describe our own receptivity survey, offering preliminary findings about the receptivity of officers to research, researchers, and tactics influenced by research. Finally, we conclude with examples of the types of efforts practitioners and researchers can engage in that might improve receptivity to research. Specifically, we discuss the Evidence-Based Policing Matrix as a research translation tool, as well as multiple demonstrations conducted by the authors that focus on institutionalizing the use of research into daily police activities.

The Next Steps: A Need for a Research Infrastructure for Evaluating Counterterrorism

Abstract: This volume emphasizes a central theme in crime prevention research and public interventions: Interventions addressing issues of great public importance must still be evidence-based. Not only must we continue to add more to the growing research on terrorism etiology, but we also need to develop an equal level of interest in evaluating counterterrorism interventions. Unlike crime prevention more generally, there is a research lacuna in counterterrorism studies. Indeed, there are special challenges in advancing counterterrorism research that are different from crime prevention studies more generally, which contribute to the scant supply of counterterrorism research. Such challenges include rare and difficult-to-study units of analysis, an absence of knowledge about base rates, lack of access to government activities and information, biases in research and politics, and unresolved definitional debates. While all of these are compelling, the values of democratic governance, which include accountability, legitimacy, legality, safety, and cost-effectiveness of government actions, necessitate the development of a more evidence-based approach to programs and interventions, whether they focus on “everyday” crime or terroristic violence.