police research projects

The Stanford Open Policing Project

On a typical day in the United States, police officers make more than 50,000 traffic stops. Our team is gathering, analyzing, and releasing records from millions of traffic stops by law enforcement agencies across the country. Our goal is to help researchers, journalists, and policymakers investigate and improve interactions between police and the public.

The Open Policing Project

C urrently, a comprehensive, national repository detailing interactions between police and the public doesn’t exist. That’s why the Stanford Open Policing Project is collecting and standardizing data on vehicle and pedestrian stops from law enforcement departments across the country — and we’re making that information freely available. We’ve already gathered over 200 million records from dozens of state and local police departments across the country.

We, the Stanford Open Policing Project, are an interdisciplinary team of researchers and journalists at Stanford University. We are committed to combining the academic rigor of statistical analysis with the explanatory power of data journalism.

Get started

See the data behind our findings, and learn how to use it in your own analysis.

• Video tutorials
• Research findings

Phoebe Leila Barghouty

Bethney Bonilla

Sam Corbett-Davies

Sharad Goel

Daniel Jenson

Jan Overgoor

Cheryl Phillips

Emma Pierson

Vignesh Ramachandran

Eric Sagara

Amy Shoemaker

Ravi Shroff

Camelia Simoiu

Police1 Research Center

Find the latest information about research conducted by law enforcement organizations and academic institutions such as the National Police Foundation, the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF) and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), among other organizations focused on officer wellness, intelligence-led policing and LEO safety issues. Research recently shared includes ‘resistance-related injuries’ among officers, the experience of minority applicants during the police recruitment process, and preventing vehicle crashes and injuries among officers.

• What officers said were the biggest challenges of 2023
• What do we really know about police suicide?
• Police1 asked: How can police supervisors better support officers’ mental wellbeing?
• Police1 asked: What can police supervisors do to be better role models?
• Examining police recruit marijuana use criteria

Research on Policing Reform and Accountability

Our research, statistical methods.

We work hard to improve measurement and quantitative research on policing, especially on the problem of quantifying racial bias.

Policy Evaluation

Public opinion & education.

We engage in research on how the mass public perceives policing and crime, as well as in public-facing education.

The Role of Officer Race and Gender in Police-Civilian Interactions in Chicago

Administrative records mask racially biased policing.

Militarization Fails to Enhance Police Safety or Reduce Crime but May Harm Police Reputation

Dean Knox on Wharton Business Daily

Data Science and the Debate on Police Reform

Our partners.

Sign up for news, publications, and events from RoPRA

We won’t spam you. This is for occasional updates about new research or major milestones. 

I agree to the Terms and Conditions .

• Our Mission
• Team Members
• TC Magazine
• Advisory Board
• 100K for 10
• Criminology at GMU
• Join Our Mailing List
• News & Announcements
• CEBCP in the News
• Calendar of Events
• Achievement Award
• Policing Hall of Fame

• News and Announcements
• Translational Criminology Magazine
• Symposia and Briefings
• Evidence-Based Policing
• Crime and Place
• Systematic Reviews
• Criminal Justice Policy
• CEBCP-W/B HIDTA
• Outreach, Symposia, & Briefings
• Translational Criminology
• CEBCP Video Library
• Criminology & Public Policy
• Technology Web Portal
• COVID-19 Projects
• Crime & Place Bibliography
• Important Links

Police Research Group

Home › Police Research Group

The Police Research Group is an association of scholars interested in conducting and using high-quality research on policing. The PRG is committed to:

• Contributing to the amount of high-quality research on policing
• Conducting and disseminating research that is useful for practical as well as scholarly purposes
• Increasing the visibility of police research in relevant academic disciplines and among policy makers and practitioners
• Recruiting promising undergraduate and graduate students to the study of policing
• Collaborating with other police-oriented research groups nationally and internationally

Membership Eligibility

Those eligible for membership in the PRG:

• Current GMU faculty who have made a significant commitment to conducting research on policing
• Currently enrolled GMU graduate and undergraduate students interested in conducting research on policing topics
• Former GMU faculty and students who have made a significant commitment to conducting research on policing topics
• Practitioners and policy makers interested in participating in police research and in applying the results of that research to practical policing matters

The following are eligible for affiliate membership in the PRG:

• Researchers at other institutions who collaborate with PRG members on specific projects

Those desiring to become members or affiliate members should contact PRG student chair Sean Wire.

Benefits of Membership

• The opportunity to meet regularly with others who are strongly committed to conducting and using high quality police research. These meetings will include the discussion of research issues, the presentation of preliminary findings by members, and presentations by outside experts
• The opportunity for students to engage in and publish student-run, student-authored projects that are guided by PRG faculty
• The opportunity to formulate new police research projects, to participate in those projects, and to publish and apply their results
• Eligible to apply for access to policing data sets archived by PRG members
• Affiliate members will be eligible to attend presentations of PRG research findings and participate in specific projects.

News & Events

The last PRG general meeting was on Wednesday, April 13th. The next PRG meeting will be held in August.

The Department of Criminology, Law and Society  posted  about last year’s Police Research Group student publication by Breanne Cave, Cody Telep, and Julie Grieco.

Questions? Email PRG student chair  Sean Wire

Languages/Accessibility

IACP has developed a number of programs on a variety of topics important to law enforcement today. Through these projects and programs, IACP delivers resources including published documents such as guidebooks and fact sheets, online and in-person training, and interactive tools.

The Law Enforcement Benchmarking and Performance Analytics Portal

• Read more about The Law Enforcement Benchmarking and Performance Analytics Portal

21st Century Policing Blueprint

• Read more about 21st Century Policing Blueprint

Academic Training to Inform Police Responses

• Read more about Academic Training to Inform Police Responses

Advancing Juvenile Justice in Law Enforcement

• Read more about Advancing Juvenile Justice in Law Enforcement

Alzheimer's Initiatives

• Read more about Alzheimer's Initiatives

Anti-Human Trafficking Training and Technical Assistance

• Read more about Anti-Human Trafficking Training and Technical Assistance

Automated License Plate Recognition

• Read more about Automated License Plate Recognition

Byrne Criminal Justice Innovation Training and Technical Assistance

• Read more about Byrne Criminal Justice Innovation Training and Technical Assistance

Center for Police Research

• Read more about Center for Police Research

Child Sex Trafficking: Tools for Law Enforcement

• Read more about Child Sex Trafficking: Tools for Law Enforcement

Citation In Lieu of Arrest

• Read more about Citation In Lieu of Arrest

Collaborative Reform Initiative Technical Assistance Center (CRI-TAC)

• Read more about Collaborative Reform Initiative Technical Assistance Center (CRI-TAC)

Scroll to preview content. Please sign in to read and get access to more member only content.

Evidence-Based Policing Is Here to Stay: Innovative Research, Meaningful Practice, and Global Reach

• Scientific Communication
• Published: 24 May 2022
• Volume 6 , pages 42–53, ( 2022 )

Cite this article

• Eric L. Piza 1 &
• Brandon C. Welsh 1  

6431 Accesses

13 Altmetric

Explore all metrics

Research Question

In the context of important advances as well as global reach, what more is needed for evidence-based policing to bridge the divide between academic research and police practice?

We draw on 18 case studies reported in The Globalization of Evidence-Based Policing: Innovations in Bridging the Research-Practice Divide (Piza and Welsh, 2022). These accounts of innovations provide a range of qualitative evidence on the integration of scientific research in contemporary policing.

The case studies describe some plausible causal links in four key processes: (a) transferring scientific knowledge to the practice community, (b) empowering officers to conduct police-led science, (c) aligning the work of researchers and practitioners, and (d) incorporating evidence-based policing in daily police functions.

Conclusions

While there is much work to do to achieve population-level impacts, many innovative efforts at bridging the research-practice divide in policing are becoming embedded enough to make that happen.

Similar content being viewed by others

Government Surveillance, Privacy, and Legitimacy

Community-oriented policing to reduce crime, disorder and fear and increase satisfaction and legitimacy among citizens: a systematic review.

Conceptualizing Public Policy

Avoid common mistakes on your manuscript.

Introduction

The title of this article is neither hyperbole nor wishful thinking on our part. After almost three decades of thinking, writing, research, and practice, the idea of EBP is very much a reality. For sure, there is much work to do: overcoming institutional resistance, bridging the research-practice divide, and furnishing police leaders and practitioners with the tools necessary to adopt an evidence-based approach in their day-to-day operations. In all these tasks, the key challenge, as Millenson ( 2021 ) astutely observes, remains whether EBP can make a real, lasting difference for citizens as well as the police institution.

We think EBP is on the road to making such a difference. It is certainly not happening at the pace that many would like, and there have been setbacks and failures along the way (see Lum & Koper, 2017 ; Millenson, 2021 ). Like other disciplines or professions purporting to embrace the evidence-based paradigm, failure is to be expected. Just as accepting the principle that failure is at the core of advancing science (Firestein, 2016 ), it is what is done with these failures that is crucial to advancement of knowledge. As a pioneering historian of evidence-based medicine, Millenson ( 2021 ) is still not convinced that either medical doctors or police officers have sufficiently embraced this view of failure as indispensable to success: to “learn from our errors and misadventures” (p. 148). At least in some circumstances, however, we think otherwise. The present article profiles some innovations in helping to make this happen.

Demonstrating that EBP is making a difference for citizens and law enforcement is going to take some time, inasmuch as the goal is to transform policing into a “totally evidenced” profession (Sherman, 2015 ) to achieve “population-level” impacts (Dodge, 2020 ) across a majority of police agencies or officers. Part of getting there involves overcoming the divide that exists between academic research and police practice (or between scholars and police practitioners). That divide is the main focus of the article. Aiding this effort is an emerging globalization or global reach of EBP. Again, there is work to do on this front, especially in countries in transition and developing countries. The good news is that no longer is the real-world practice of EBP limited to a handful of developed countries.

The purpose of this article is to summarize the evidence for that claim from the main findings of a new book on the subject: The Globalization of Evidence-Based Policing: Innovations in Bridging the Research-Practice Divide (Piza and Welsh, 2022 ). The article is organized around four themes that are central to advancing EBP: (a) transferring scientific knowledge to the practice community, (b) empowering officers to conduct police-led science, (c) aligning the work of researchers and practitioners, and (d) incorporating EBP in daily police functions. The article ends with some concluding remarks and directions for the future.

Transferring Scientific Knowledge to the Practice Community

Evidence-based policing is an active process requiring reciprocity between research and practice for maximum benefits to be achieved (Huey & Mitchell, 2019 ). The generation of scientific knowledge by academic researchers must be consulted by police practitioners in order for EBP to realize its full potential. Unfortunately, EBP remains a foreign concept to millions of police officers and leaders around the world (Sherman, 2015 ). While higher-ranking officers exhibit more knowledge of EBP than lower-ranking officers, they tend to define it in a way that is different from the intended meaning (Telep & Bottema, 2020 ).

Key to navigating such impediments is the design of research projects that stand to directly benefit police agencies. This process could be further assisted by involving police practitioners directly in the interpretation of findings and discussion of their implications for policy and practice. In our book, Neyroud ( 2022 ) connects such active research processes to Rogers’ ( 2003 ) diffusion of innovation theory, by which the acquisition of knowledge leads an institution to be persuaded to adopt a given innovation. Neyroud demonstrates this process through case studies on police-led diversion models, the global implementation of community policing, and the use of EBP to support police reform in India. Neyroud was personally involved in each case as both a police professional and academic, providing insight into the institutional processes driving the diffusion of policing innovations. Key across his case studies is the increased engagement of police personnel with research evidence, largely made possible by such developments as the investment in and dissemination of systematic reviews, increased willingness on the part of local governments to fund primary research, and technical assistance in program implementation offered by international bodies like the United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime.

A key impediment to the wide-scale adoption of EBP pertains to lack of training opportunities in police departments. Despite education levels of police leaders substantially increasing since the 1970s, less progress has been made in the application of scientific knowledge to practice (Sherman, 2013 ). Furthermore, education and training have typically focused on police leaders rather than mid-managers who directly oversee daily operations (Ratcliffe, 2019 ). This creates a situation where police have access to evidence on “what works,” but are given little capacity to implement such strategies in a manner that maximizes the likelihood of success (Johnson et al., 2015 ).

Ratcliffe’s ( 2022 ) evidence discusses the development and delivery of an EBP training program for mid-level command staff. As argued by Ratcliffe, while police agencies often view tactical operations as hard skills requiring constant training, setting crime reduction strategy and policy is often considered a skill one can learn “on the job.” Ratcliffe’s police commander crime reduction course enhances the SARA (Scanning, Analysis, Response, and Assessment) model popularized by problem-oriented policing through specific practices and checklists to introduce more structured working practices into command work function. Building on SARA, the PANDA model has been developed: Problem scan, Analyze problem, Nominate strategy, Deploy strategy, and Assess outcomes. PANDA retains aspects of SARA while adding more specificity to the articulation and deployment of a response. Each stage of the PANDA model has an accompanying checklist to foster a structured approach to decision-making to enhance the existing skillset of police leaders.

La Vigne’s ( 2022 ) evidence provides a retrospective accounting of efforts to translate research findings for lay audiences to inform policing policy and practice. Her interviews with American policymakers and criminal justice influencers show that in the latter half of the twentieth century, criminology had a tenuous (at best) tie to policy relevance and media engagement. The interviews demonstrate how policing’s advancement towards more policy relevance and media impact developed within a complex ecosystem of actors in the criminal justice and policing space. That ecosystem, in the USA, consists of academic researchers and research centers within universities; scholars housed in non-academic research institutes; the academy, as represented primarily by the two most prominent criminology associations; the federal government; and philanthropy.

Dissemination represents a key aspect of police research translation (Lum & Koper, 2017 ). The College of Policing (UK), founded in 2012, is one example, which communicates research evidence through its What Works Centre for Crime Reduction (WWCCR). Sidebottom and Tilley ( 2022 ) discuss the work of the WWCCR and its Crime Reduction Toolkit ( https://www.college.police.uk/research/crime-reduction-toolkit ), which is used as its primary research translation tool—measuring the quality of systematic reviews of crime and justice interventions. For example, the authors discuss how well the programmatic needs of policymakers are addressed by systematic reviews on a range of crime prevention approaches (e.g., alley gating, CCTV, hot spots policing, focused deterrence), diversion (e.g., drug substitutes, mentoring), and reoffending programs (e.g., domestic abuse sanctions, electronic tagging). The authors report that most systematic reviews provide rich data on program effects, but provide less information on monetary costs and benefits, mechanisms and moderators, and implementation challenges.

Empowering Officers to Conduct Police-Led Science

Piza et al. ( 2021 ) argue that the institutionalization of evidence-based policing requires understanding how scientific knowledge is produced. Knowledge internalization, where academics draw from generalizable knowledge to inform the narrower, specific actions of practitioners (Nonaka, 1994 ), has been the predominant model in policing since the professional era starting in the mid-1900s (Sherman, 2011 : 531). There are a number of inherent limitations in such an approach, including the typically slow-moving process of research not fitting an expedited timeline needed to inform policy and practice, and academic researchers lacking the skill to help with specific problems facing practitioners. For such reasons, Sherman ( 2011 ) proposes a move towards a model of police-led science, which puts police officers at the forefront of generating evidence, with agencies empowering their officers to develop and test research questions.

Four chapters in Piza and Welsh ( 2022 ) focus on efforts to foster police-led science. Smith ( 2022 ), for example, recounts his lived experience of higher education as a mechanism for securing greater influence and autonomy as a senior police officer of the Metropolitan Police Service of London. Smith concludes that many problems of the police profession are not due to a lack of credible scientific evidence, but rather to an organizational behavior that is unable to readily apply such evidence in practice. Smith demonstrates how police reform requires leaders highly skilled in change management who can develop critical insights on how their organization functions—and simultaneously secure new knowledge from academic partners who seek to shape policing practice. Smith argues that such a context transforms EBP from something that is “done to the police service” by those on the outside looking in, to something driven by the police service itself.

The empowerment necessary to support police-led science can also be fostered by professional societies, two of which are profiled in the book. Prince et al. ( 2022 ) recount the formation of the American Society of Evidence-Based Policing (ASEBP) and its organizational activities. Huey and Ferguson ( 2022 ) do likewise for the Canadian Society of Evidence-Based Policing (Can-SEBP). Both organizations were developed out of unique needs in the two countries, and they now form part of a much larger global network of EBP societies.

Prince et al. ( 2022 ) demonstrate the evolution of ASEBP as a series of “starts and stops” that allowed the organization to organically find its purpose. Over its first 6 years, ASEBP has grown from a group of 10 to over 350 members, offering an annual research conference that attracts attendees from around the world and from which applied research projects often emerge. Huey and Ferguson ( 2022 ) discuss how Can-SEBP resulted from a distinct need of the Canadian government to better foster evidence-based approaches to public safety, with the objective of rebuilding Canada’s capacity for applied policing research.

Perhaps the most promising direction for developing police-led science is by enabling police officers to directly generate their own scientific research evidence through designing and implementing field experiments. Doing so requires a departure from standard procedure, as policing primarily relies on police academies to provide initial and ongoing training for officers in legal frameworks guiding the policing profession and the proper use of law enforcement tactics (Ratcliffe, 2022 ). Mazerolle et al. ( 2022 ), however, describe supplemental EBP workshops developed and offered by the University of Queensland for the purpose of empowering police to drive for themselves the reform agenda around EBP.

These EBP workshops are intentionally designed to promote meaningful academic-practitioner partnerships for research production. The police participants come to a workshop with a specific problem facing their agency and draw upon their operational knowledge and experience to design an innovative response. The academic facilitator supplies research methodology to develop the idea and generate evidence of effectiveness. Police then use this information to lead field experiments. The field experiments emerging from the EBP workshops have explored a range of contemporary policing issues, including the capacity of third-party policing to disrupt the sale of illicit drugs from hotel rooms, the effect of procedural justice principles on routine encounters with citizens, and the long-term effect of diversion on repeat offending (see also Cowan et al., 2019 ).

Aligning the Work of Researchers and Practitioners

Researcher-practitioner partnerships can provide an environment that fosters evidence-based policing, especially when both parties contribute to problem identification, strategy development, and strategy implementation (Mock, 2010 ). A partnership environment helps both sides to navigate the competing interests and incentive structures of academia and policing. Todak et al. ( 2022 ), for example, draw upon their experiences with the inaugural cohort of the National Institute of Justice’s Law Enforcement Advancing Data and Science (LEADS) Academics program. This program has contributed to the development of many productive research collaborations between practitioners and academics, including the design, deployment, and evaluation of the effect of foot patrols in Dayton, Ohio (Haberman & Stiver, 2019 ).

Action-research partnerships can be improved through the involvement of embedded criminologists who take an active role in the day-to-day routine of police agencies. The presence of an in-house academic can provide police agencies with uninhibited access to rigorously trained, scientifically objective scholars in support of agency operations. The integration of embedded criminologists in policing follows the successful application of the model in corrections (Petersilia, 2008 ), and has thus far involved academics working in close concert with command-staff police personnel. Gerell ( 2022 ) provides an account of his work with the intelligence unit of Sweden’s National Police, which expanded the embedded criminologist model into the field of crime analysis.

The potential of embedded criminologists and police “pracademics” to accelerate these partnerships is taken up by Douglas and Braga ( 2022 ) who describe their role in promoting the adoption of EBP within police agencies. In the past, academic partnerships with police departments have largely been project-based enterprises that rarely continued beyond the project’s end (Rojek et al., 2012 ). Embedded criminologists help create a more lasting effect by their continuing presence, while pracademics — police officers who have received academic training in research and evaluation — can act as knowledge “brokers” in their organizations, who can align perspectives across multiple constituencies (Posner, 2009 : 16). These capacities may make pracademics the most likely mechanism for successfully integrating the “craft” of police work and the “hard science” of empirical research (Willis & Mastrofski, 2018 ).

Gimenez-Santana et al. ( 2022 ) present their work with a Newark public safety initiative developed at the Rutgers-Newark School of Criminal Justice. The project uses a model of data-informed community engagement (DICE) to assist a working group of community partner organizations in identifying crime problems and developing evidence-based solutions. DICE involves the public presentation and discussions of data analysis findings at community meetings attended by all stakeholder agencies. Risk-Terrain Modeling (RTM) for spatial analysis of crime is at the heart of DICE by identifying the risks that come from the physical environment’s crime attractors and generators (Brantingham & Brantingham, 1995 ), and models how they co-locate to create unique behavior settings for crime.

Piza et al. ( 2022 ) present a proposal for police technology research to be guided by Community Technology Oversight Boards (CTOBs), to better inform the design, implementation, and evaluation of police technology interventions, emphasizing active collaboration and continuous feedback. The authors propose CTOBs following a critical assessment of Piza’s experience in analyzing closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras in Newark, New Jersey (see, e.g., Piza et al., 2014 , 2015 ). The purpose of CTOBs is to formalize community-focused partnerships to inform police surveillance technologies. They should comprise practitioners, researchers, and community stakeholders to encourage the adoption of sound science and efficient, effective, and equitable technology interventions. For best results, these stakeholders would work collaboratively to identify and analyze problems, consider and select specific technology for deployment, conduct in-depth assessments to understand the potential community impact, and conduct rigorous process and outcome evaluations to determine whether technology interventions should be adjusted. While this model can be readily applied to contemporary police technologies, such as CCTV, it holds particular promise for emerging surveillance technologies such as facial recognition and aerial drones. Given the rapidly expanding popularity of these tools, as well as their potentially enhanced intrusiveness and the general controversy surrounding their use, a CTOB provides a platform for consultation and negotiation.

Incorporating Evidence-Based Policing in Daily Police Functions

A wide range of innovative approaches have been carried out in recent years as part of a growing effort to embed evidence-based policing principles in daily police functions. Our book (Piza and Welsh, 2022 ) profiles five such approaches. In the early 2010s, Lum et al. ( 2011 ) launched an innovative and user-friendly tool known as the Evidence-Based Policing Matrix. Viewed at the time as the “next phase of evidence-based policing,” the Matrix was designed to aid police agencies in using scientific evidence in a strategic manner. It did so by “developing generalizations or principles on the nature of effective police strategies and translating the field of police evaluation research into digestible forms that can be used to alter police tactics, strategies, accountability systems, and training” (Lum et al., 2011 : 3). The first test of the Matrix reaffirmed some of the scientific evidence on police effectiveness in reducing crime. It continues to serve as a key resource for updating the evidence base in a timely manner and tailoring the evidence to the needs of police agencies.

In the next phase of the Matrix, known as the Matrix Demonstration Projects (MDP), Lum and Koper ( 2022 ) illustrate how the MDP facilitates three activities that are essential to achieving EBP: translation, receptivity, and institutionalization. These core activities come with the added benefit of contributing to the development of high-quality research evidence. The authors discuss in detail the creation of tools to support the application of EBP in the field (e.g., the Evidence-Based Policing Playbook) and the communication of EBP principles to police management and leadership.

Another innovative approach is the CompStat360 platform, which harnesses the benefits of both the traditional CompStat model and community policing perspectives. Neusteter and Magnus ( 2022 ) describe how CompStat360 was piloted and developed through a practitioner-researcher partnership in Tucson, Arizona. The platform consists of planned connections or feedback loops among three overlapping dimensions: (a) prevention, intervention, and clearance of crimes; (b) maximization of organizational effectiveness; and (c) integration of community support and involvement. Key lessons from CompsStat360 include these:

not all projects required crime analysis resources or the use of a “rigid” problem-solving structure;

the importance of targeting micro-problem areas or places (e.g., a motel generating a high volume of 911 calls); and

police commanders going beyond “siloed” problem solving to establishing ad hoc multidisciplinary teams.

As an example of the global reach of EBP, O’Brien and Evans ( 2022 ) describe the development, early initiatives, and current scope of the New Zealand Police Service’s Evidence-Based Policing Centre (EBPC). Established in early 2019, the Centre is dedicated to institutionalizing EBP in day-to-day operations of the police service. The EBPC strategy is structured around four key functions: (a) data science; (b) performance, research, and insights; (c) delivery and improvements; and (d) implementation and evaluation. Teams assigned to each of these functions combine police practitioners, researchers, and other stakeholders to carry out these functions. At the time of writing, there were more than 50 active projects in these four functions, with another 100 projects in the scoping and development phase. In recognition of the many challenges of embedding EBP in operational policing and sustaining it over time, the Centre’s efforts are guided by a number of “success criteria.” These include meeting specific targets, including making New Zealand the safest country in the world, fostering a culture of learning and innovation, and forming strong partnerships with others who aspire to similar goals.

Turning back to the USA, Green and Bates ( 2022 ) profile a state-wide initiative (in the state of New York) that relies on EBP practices to reduce urban gun violence at the local level. Facilitated by technical support, training, and assistance in data collection from the New York Division of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS), the initiative leverages a network of crime analysis centers (as a way to bolster the analytical capacity of local police agencies), an innovative street outreach program, a tested gun violence prevention program, and efforts to improve clearance rates for non-fatal gun crimes. By embracing a more active role than most traditional state grant-awarding systems, DCJS has also been in a position to help agencies respond to changing conditions on the ground, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic, and address implementation challenges.

The final innovative approach profiled in the book for embedding EBP principles in daily police functions concerns the Cambridge Police Executive Programme (CPEP). Building on a program for certifying police leaders launched at Cambridge University’s Institute of Criminology in 1996 and directed by Lawrence Sherman with an EBP curriculum since 2008, the Programme offers a part-time master’s degree to mid-career police officers. Its aim is training “pracademics” in policing both to do research and lead its application. Its diverse student body enables its effort to institutionalize EBP across the world.

Two main perspectives guide this Programme’s approach to EBP: (a) EBP should serve as a “general framework for making decisions” and (b) EBP is a “strategy for organizing police activities around a holistic mission of reducing total harm from crimes” (Sherman, 2022 : 301). Undergirding these views has been the mission of getting research into practice, culminating in scores of applied research projects by the student pracademics, in collaboration with their faculty thesis advisors, and leading to scientific discoveries and changes in police practices. The Cambridge Programme shows how academic training can directly, and in short order, impact police agency operations. It also serves as a proof of concept for replication in other top-tier universities, as a way to get more pracademics in policing and help institutionalize EBP.

Conclusions and Future Directions

Our conclusion from these 18 case studies is that the evidence-based policing movement has expanded rapidly across the world. It has gained a foothold in a large number of police agencies. It has become part of the institutional landscape of policing, through international, regional, and country-level professional societies dedicated to its advancement.

At the same time, and undergirding some of the movement’s success, there has been a growing body of scientific research. From experimental and quasi-experimental evaluations (many published in this journal) to Campbell Collaboration reviews of the highest quality studies, research has demonstrated the effectiveness of a diverse range of proactive policing strategies (Lum & Koper, 2017 ; Telep & Weisburd, 2016 ; Weisburd and Majmundar, 2018 ; Welsh, 2019 ). In parallel to this work has been a growing body of survey research that has documented the receptivity of police to evidence-based policing (see, e.g., Lum & Koper, 2017 ; Telep, 2017 ; Telep & Lum, 2014 ).

These case studies of EBP innovations from across the world have had a particular focus on bridging the research-practice divide. They demonstrate just how far the movement has advanced in the last three decades. They also provide us with greater insights and, in many cases, research evidence on how to bring about more effective and fair policing through an evidence-based approach. This is no less than a major achievement.

Building on this work and advancing the body of knowledge that we now have calls attention to several key priorities for the years ahead. One priority for global expansion of EBP is moving beyond rich, industrialized countries. Practitioner and researcher outreach with resources at-hand, on-site, and university/college training, and building capacity with regional partners will go a long way to making this happen. The Cambridge Police Executive Programme may provide a framework for how these objectives can be accomplished on a large scale, even fostering the ability to achieve population-level impacts.

Another priority is police-led and researcher-supported innovations, with a clear focus on sustainable change. This calls for moving beyond one-off, short-term projects, and in some cases attending to the underlying causes of crime rather than its symptoms alone. EBP could be a leader on this front.

A key priority remains the need for an unrelenting focus on evaluation of all dimensions of policing. As shown in Piza and Welsh ( 2022 ), almost every element of policing is testable. Creativity and ingenuity, along with an unwavering commitment to do no harm, are the engines driving EBP innovations. These qualities also need to be harnessed for experimentation. With a rich and deep supply of police practitioners and researchers who exhibit these qualities, we think EBP is up to the challenge.

Brantingham, P. L., & Brantingham, P. J. (1995). Criminality of place: Crime generators and crime attractors. European Journal on Criminal Policy and Research, 3 , 5–26.

Article   Google Scholar  

Cowan, D., Strang, H., Sherman, L. W., & Munoz, S. V. (2019). Reducing repeat offending through less prosecution in Victoria, Australia: Opportunities for increased diversion of offenders. Cambridge Journal of Evidence-Based Policing, 3 , 109–117.

Dodge, K. A. (2020). Annual research review: Universal and targeted strategies for assigning interventions to achieve population impact. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 61 , 255–267.

Douglas, S., & Braga, A. A. (2022). Non-traditional research partnerships to aid the adoption of evidence-based policing. In E. L. Piza & B. C. Welsh (Eds.), The globalization of evidence-based policing: Innovations in bridging the research-practice divide (pp. 178–190). Routledge.

Google Scholar  

Firestein, S. (2016). Failure: Why science is so successful . Oxford University Press.

Gerell, M. (2022). The benefits and challenges of embedding criminologists in crime analysis units: An example from Sweden. In E. L. Piza & B. C. Welsh (Eds.), The globalization of evidence-based policing: Innovations in bridging the research-practice divide (pp. 166–177). Routledge.

Gimenez-Santana, A., Caplan, J. M., & Kennedy, L. W. (2022). Data-informed community engagement: The Newark public safety collaborative. In E. L. Piza & B. C. Welsh (Eds.), The globalization of evidence-based policing: Innovations in bridging the research-practice divide (pp. 191–205). Routledge.

Green, M. C., & Bates, L. (2022). State-wide evidence-based policing: The example of the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services. In E. L. Piza & B. C. Welsh (Eds.), The globalization of evidence-based policing: Innovations in bridging the research-practice divide (pp. 273–294). Routledge.

Haberman, C. P., & Stiver, W. H. (2019). The Dayton Foot Patrol Program: An evaluation of hot spots foot patrols in a central business district. Police Quarterly, 22 , 247–277.

Huey, L., & Ferguson, L. (2022). Building empowerment: The Canadian approach to evidence-based policing. In E. L. Piza & B. C. Welsh (Eds.), The globalization of evidence-based policing: Innovations in bridging the research-practice divide (pp. 122–135). Routledge.

Huey, L., & Mitchell, R. J. (2019). An introduction. In R. J. Mitchell & L. Huey (Eds.), Evidence based policing. An introduction (pp. 3–14). Policy Press.

Johnson, S. D., Tilley, N., & Bowers, K. J. (2015). Introducing EMMIE: An evidence rating scale to encourage mixed-method crime prevention synthesis reviews. Journal of Experimental Criminology, 11 , 459–473.

La Vigne, N. G. (2022). Fits and starts: Criminology’s influence on policing policy and practice. In E. L. Piza & B. C. Welsh (Eds.), The globalization of evidence-based policing: Innovations in bridging the research-practice divide (pp. 53–72). Routledge.

Lum, C. M., & Koper, C. S. (2017). Evidence-based policing: Translating research into practice . Oxford University Press.

Lum, C. M., & Koper, C. S. (2022). Translating and institutionalizing evidence-based policing: The Matrix Demonstration Projects. In E. L. Piza & B. C. Welsh (Eds.), The globalization of evidence-based policing: Innovations in bridging the research-practice divide (pp. 225–239). Routledge.

Lum, C. M., Koper, C. S., & Telep, C. W. (2011). The evidence-based policing matrix. Journal of Experimental Criminology, 7 , 3–26.

Mazerolle, L., Bennett, S., Martin, P., Newman, M., Cowan, D., & Williams, S. (2022). Evidence-based policing in Australia and New Zealand: Empowering police to drive the reform agenda. In E. L. Piza & B. C. Welsh (Eds.), The globalization of evidence-based policing: Innovations in bridging the research-practice divide (pp. 136–149). Routledge.

Millenson, M. L. (2021). Docs and cops: Origins and ongoing challenges of evidence-based policing. Cambridge Journal of Evidence-Based Policing, 5 , 146–155.

Mock, L. (2010). Action research for crime control and prevention. In J. Klofas, N. K. Hipple, & E. McGarrel (Eds.), The new criminal justice: American communities and the changing world of crime control. Routledge.

Neusteter, S. R., & Magnus, C. (2022). CompStat 360: CompStat beyond the numbers. In E. L. Piza & B. C. Welsh (Eds.), The globalization of evidence-based policing: Innovations in bridging the research-practice divide (pp. 240–254). Routledge.

Neyroud, P. (2022). Globalising evidence-based policing: Case studies of community policing, reform, and diversion. In E. L. Piza & B. C. Welsh (Eds.), The globalization of evidence-based policing: Innovations in bridging the research-practice divide (pp. 23–38). Routledge.

Nonaka, I. (1994). A dynamic theory of organizational knowledge creation. Organization Science, 5 (1), 14–37.

O’Brien, B., & Evans, M. (2022). Transitioning into an evidence-based police service: The New Zealand experience. In E. L. Piza & B. C. Welsh (Eds.), The globalization of evidence-based policing: Innovations in bridging the research-practice divide (pp. 255–272). Routledge.

Petersilia, J. (2008). Influencing public policy: An embedded criminologist reflects on California prison reform. Journal of Experimental Criminology, 4 , 335–356.

Piza, E. L., & Welsh, B. C. (Eds.). (2022). The globalization of evidence-based policing: Innovations in bridging the research-practice divide . Routledge.

Piza, E. L., Caplan, J. M., & Kennedy, L. W. (2014). Is the punishment more certain? An analysis of CCTV detections and enforcement. Justice Quarterly, 31 , 1015–1043.

Piza, E. L., Caplan, J. M., Kennedy, L. W., & Gilchrist, A. M. (2015). The effects of merging proactive CCTV monitoring with directed police patrol: A randomized controlled trial. Journal of Experimental Criminology, 11 , 43–69.

Piza, E. L., Szkola, J., & Blount-Hill, K.-L. (2021). How can embedded criminologists, police pracademics, and crime analysts help increase police-led program evaluations? A survey of authors cited in the evidence-based policing matrix. Policing: A Journal of Policy and Practice, 15 , 1217–1231.

Piza, E. L., Chu, S. P., & Welsh, B. C. (2022). Surveillance, action research, and community technology oversight boards: A proposed model for police technology research. In E. L. Piza & B. C. Welsh (Eds.), The globalization of evidence-based policing: Innovations in bridging the research-practice divide (pp. 206–222). Routledge.

Posner, P. L. (2009). The pracademic: An agenda for re-engaging practitioners and academics. Public Budgeting & Finance, 29 , 12–26.

Prince, H., Potts, J., & Mitchell, R. J. (2022). Creating a social network of change agents: The American Society of Evidence-Based Policing. In E. L. Piza & B. C. Welsh (Eds.), The globalization of evidence-based policing: Innovations in bridging the research-practice divide (pp. 111–121). Routledge.

Ratcliffe, J. H. (2019). Reducing crime: A companion for police leaders . Routledge.

Ratcliffe, J. H. (2022). Developing evidence-based crime reduction skills in mid-level command staff. In E. L. Piza & B. C. Welsh (Eds.), The globalization of evidence-based policing: Innovations in bridging the research-practice divide (pp. 39–52). Routledge.

Rogers, E. (2003). Diffusion of innovations . Simon and Schuster.

Rojek, J., Alpert, G., & Smith, H. (2012). The utilization of research by the police. Police Practice and Research, 13 , 329–341.

Sherman, L. W. (2011). Police and crime control. In M. Tonry (Ed.), The Oxford handbook of crime and criminal justice (pp. 509–537). Oxford University Press.

Sherman, L. W. (2013). The rise of evidence-based policing: Targeting, testing, and tracking. Crime and Justice: A Review of Research, 42 , 377–451.

Sherman, L. W. (2015). A tipping point for “totally evidenced policing”: Ten ideas for building an evidence-based police agency. International Criminal Justice Review, 25 , 11–29.

Sherman, L. W. (2022). The Cambridge Police Executive Programme: A global reach for pracademics. In E. L. Piza & B. C. Welsh (Eds.), The globalization of evidence-based policing: Innovations in bridging the research-practice divide (pp. 295–317). Routledge.

Sidebottom, A., & Tilley, N. (2022). EMMIE and the What Works Centre for Crime Reduction: Progress, challenges, and future directions for evidence-based policing and crime reduction in the United Kingdom. In E. L. Piza & B. C. Welsh (Eds.), The globalization of evidence-based policing: Innovations in bridging the research-practice divide (pp. 73–91). Routledge.

Smith, R. (2022). From practitioner to policy maker: Developing influence and expertise to deliver police reform. In E. L. Piza & B. C. Welsh (Eds.), The globalization of evidence-based policing: Innovations in bridging the research-practice divide (pp. 95–110). Routledge.

Telep, C. W. (2017). Police officer receptivity to research and evidence-based policing: Examining variability within and across agencies. Crime & Delinquency, 63 , 976–999.

Telep, C. W., & Bottema, A. J. (2020). Adopt evidence-based policing. In C. M. Katz & E. R. Maguire (Eds.), Transforming the police: Thirteen key reforms (pp. 9–25). Waveland Press.

Telep, C. W., & Lum, C. (2014). The receptivity of officers to empirical research and evidence-based policing: An examination of survey data from three agencies. Police Quarterly, 17 , 359–385.

Telep, C. W., & Weisburd, D. (2016). Policing. In D. Weisburd, D. P. Farrington, & C. E. Gill (Eds.), What works in crime prevention and rehabilitation: Lessons from systematic reviews (pp. 137–168). Springer.

Chapter   Google Scholar  

Todak, N., McLean, K., Nix, J., & Haberman, C. P. (2022). The LEADS Academics Program: Building sustainable police-research partnerships in pursuit of evidence-based policing. In E. L. Piza & B. C. Welsh (Eds.), The globalization of evidence-based policing: Innovations in bridging the research-practice divide (pp. 153–165). Routledge.

Weisburd, D., & Majmundar, M. K. (Eds.). (2018). Proactive policing: Effects on crime and communities . National Academies Press.

Welsh, B. C. (2019). Evidence-based policing for crime prevention. In D. Weisburd & A. A. Braga (Eds.), Police innovation: Contrasting perspectives (2nd ed., pp. 439–456). Cambridge University Press.

Willis, J. J., & Mastrofski, S. D. (2018). Improving policing by integrating craft and science: What can patrol officers teach us about good police work? Policing and Society, 28 , 27–44.

Download references

Acknowledgements

The authors are grateful to the journal editor, Lawrence Sherman, for insightful revisions to an earlier version of this article.

Author information

Authors and affiliations.

School of Criminology and Criminal Justice, Northeastern University, Churchill Hall, 360 Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA, 02115, USA

Eric L. Piza & Brandon C. Welsh

You can also search for this author in PubMed   Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Eric L. Piza .

Additional information

Publisher's note.

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Piza, E., Welsh, B. Evidence-Based Policing Is Here to Stay: Innovative Research, Meaningful Practice, and Global Reach. Camb J Evid Based Polic 6 , 42–53 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s41887-022-00074-x

Download citation

Published : 24 May 2022

Issue Date : June 2022

DOI : https://doi.org/10.1007/s41887-022-00074-x

Share this article

Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content:

Sorry, a shareable link is not currently available for this article.

Provided by the Springer Nature SharedIt content-sharing initiative

• Evidence-based policing
• Research-practice divide
• Globalization
• Public policy
• Find a journal
• Publish with us
• Track your research

Radford University

College of Humanities & Behavioral Sciences

• Davis College of Business and Economics
• College of Education and Human Development
• College of Graduate Studies and Research
• Waldron College of Health and Human Services
• College of Humanities and Behavioral Sciences
• Artis College of Science and Technology
• College of Visual and Performing Arts
• Other Offices and Departments

Explore the College of Humanities and Behavioral Sciences

Our students engage in experiential learning activities and internships that give them an opportunity to serve their communities, while preparing them for jobs after graduation.

1  /  1

   »

• Center for Police Practice, Policy and Research
• Women's & Gender Studies
• School of Communication
• Interdisciplinary Humanities Research Lab
• Wicked Initiatives
• Department of English
• Interdisciplinary Studies
• Philosophy and Religious Studies
• Department of Criminal Justice
• Foreign Languages and Literatures
• Department of History
• Department of Political Science
• News and Activities
• Center Leadership
• Radford Faculty Associates
• Police Fellows
• Student Assistants and Student Fellows
• Excellence in Policing Award
• Evidence-Based Research Projects

Police Practice-Based Projects

• Academic Articles
• Books and Book Chapters
• Reports, Articles, and Guidebooks
• News Articles, Videos, and Podcasts
• Police Training
• Stratified Policing Implementation Assistance
• Stratified Policing Partners

Practice-based research is a process that complements random controlled trials (i.e., experimental research) and is based on good quality data collected from routine police practice that when evaluated can provide direction for implementation of programs and organizational treatments. There are several methods that can accomplish a practice-based research approach.

• Researchers actively assist in developing processes and mechanisms for implementation, provide technical assistance, and then conduct a process evaluation that informs both the police department and the field.
• Police and researchers work collaboratively on demonstration and field application projects.
• Police departments that have identified an effective strategy enlist researchers to conduct an evaluation of the process and impact of its implementation.

The following are practice-based police research projects that have been conducted by members of the Center.

Office of Community-Oriented Policing Services Grant: Danville, VA Police Department Case Study: Understanding the Effects of Stratified Policing and Community Engagement on Crime, the Community, and the Police Organization 

In recent years, police have become more disengaged from conducting proactive crime reduction and engaging the community. There is a need now, more than ever, to provide a clear path for how police, city officials, and communities can reengage to improve safety in their communities. Historically, the City of Danville, VA experienced some of the highest crime and poverty in Virginia. For decades, there was distrust among city officials, the community, and police where improvement would have seemed impossible. Starting in 2019, the Danville Police Department (DPD) implemented a stratified proactive community engagement and crime reduction model (Stratified Policing). Comparing the three year periods of 2016-18 to 2019-21, the city has seen a 51% decrease in violent and 23% in property crime ( https://www.facebook.com/RiverCityTV/videos/401124391815697 ).

Additionally, there have been significant improvements in how city officials and the community trust/partner with DPD to solve community harms. This has resulted in officer’s improved morale and willingness to engage with the community and proactive crime reduction.

This project fulfills the need to build trust/legitimacy with the community and enhance DPD’s current efforts of transparency with its community by examining and understanding the nuances of how DPD was able to decrease crime and improve community collaboration/trust. DPD will work with Drs. Roberto and Rachel Santos (Center for Police Practice, Policy and Research, Radford University in Radford, VA), to conduct a comprehensive case study to understand the effects of DPD’s efforts on its relationship with the community and city officials, its organizational culture, and crime and disorder.

Using a mixed-methods approach for data collection from a wide array of individuals and groups within the community, local government officials, criminal justice partners, DPD personnel at all ranks, and official crime data, the project seeks to dissect and understand how DPD was successful and identify ways that DPD can refine, adjust, and improve its practices to better institutionalize its proactive community engagement and crime reduction efforts. For the broader law enforcement community, the case study results will offer specific community-based and crime reduction examples based on DPD experiences as well as considerations, lessons learned, and recommendations for implementation and sustainability. The goal is to provide guidance for other agencies and their communities on implementing an organizational model that brings together proactive community engagement and evidence-based crime reduction. The audience who will find the case study most helpful are police leaders, city managers, mayors, and communities who are struggling to systematically implement proactive crime reduction, while at the same time, are facing high levels of crime and trying to build relationships with their communities where there is a lack of trust. 

Publication forthcoming, late 2024.

Office of Community-Oriented Policing Grant: Translating Best Practices: Developing a Framework for Institutionalizing Community Policing by Rank

Publication (2024):  Operationalizing Proactive Community Engagement: A Framework for Police Organizations

Abstract: This guide is intended to present police leaders with a framework for institutionalizing community engagement strategies to improve their personnel’s willingness to increase proactive, positive interactions with the community. It draws on the discussions from law enforcement focus groups at every rank from 14 police departments, sheriff’s offices, and state police organizations, synthesizing the results into three themes: (1) defining expectations for proactive community engagement (2) engaging leaders in proactive community engagement and (3) establishing proactive community engagement accountability. To illustrate how these concepts can be applied, the final section presents how a specific proactive community engagement strategy—community walks—can be holistically implemented in a neighborhood experiencing high victimization.

Project Description: The Office of Community-Oriented Policing Services, “Community Policing Development,” grant is a project in which the Center for Police Practice, Policy and Research is partnering with 13 police departments and sheriff’s offices. The strength of community policing lies is in its flexibility and diverse set of strategies, but this also creates ambiguity in how community policing should be implemented throughout a police department and by whom.  For community policing to be normalized in an agency, it must not be carried out by a specialist squad or relegated for only some individuals at the officer level, but must be an integral part of the organizational mission and carried out at each level of the organization. The goal of this project is to produce practice-based deliverables that present an organizational approach in which all ranks in the police department are engaged in community policing on a daily basis. The Center for Police Practice, Policy and Research is partnering with 13 community-focused police departments and sheriff’s offices to solicit best practices. The project will result in a framework and toolkit to assist agencies in institutionalizing community policing throughout their organizations.

Office of Community-Oriented Policing Grant: Proactive Police Response to Domestic-Related Repeat Call For Service

Publication (2023):  COPS Office Guide: Proactive Response to Domestic-Related Repeat Calls for Service

In 2018, the Danville, VA Police Department (DPD) implemented a Stratified Policing strategy to combat one of the highest rates of violent crime in Virginia. Working with the creators of the strategy, Drs. Santos, professors from Radford University, DPD was able to cut violent crime by half in 2019. With grant funding from the Office of Community-Oriented Policing Services, DPD and Radford University’s Center for Police Practice, Policy and Research partnered again to apply the successful model to domestic-related repeat calls for service. The project sought to identify, track, and address repeat incidents at residences by applying police and community resources to prevent or limit disputes from escalating. Using the problem-solving process, sergeants were systematically assigned responsibility for repeat incidents and held accountable for implementing responses and resolution of the problem. Weekly reports were created to identify the locations, track responses, and monitor progress toward resolution. Weekly meetings were conducted to evaluate and adjust strategies until the domestic situation is resolved and the location/persons are no longer an issue. Community-level domestic-related resources were utilized to support the process and supplement the police response.  The goals are to prevent the escalation of violence and increase victim safety in Danville while at the same time create a replicable process and tools that can be implemented and sustained in any jurisdiction at a minimal cost.

News article about the project:  Danville PD awarded $90.5K grant for response to domestic violence calls

Using Drones for CPTED Analysis in City of Radford Public Schools

Dr. ‘ Shawn Smith, Center Faculty Fellow,  is working with Corporal Eric Martin, school liaison and oversight officer of School Resource Officers (SROs) for the Radford City Police Department (RCPD), and Radford City Public Schools (RCPS) to perform CPTED/Drone analysis of school facilities throughout the Radford City Public schools system in the interest of better fortification against and response to mass shooting threats. Dr. Smith is overseeing the use of the aerial unmanned drone and gimbal 360 degree camera technologies, recently acquired by the Criminal Justice Department at Radford University, to complete a thorough examination of the layout (both internal and external) of each school in the RCPS district. The initial assessment was performed for Belle Heth Elementary School , located on George St. in Radford, Va.

The CPTED-centered analysis and active shooter response is about to enter its second phase.  Partnering with Dr. Skip Watts (Radford Department of Geology), they have created 3-D renderings that were taken from drone scans of the schools.  The models are usable now for officer training, and Corporal Martin’ is eager to move forward to the next phase.  Some results of this work include plans for redesigning one of the school's front entrance based upon the recommendations offered in the initial report.

Walton County, FL Sheriff’s Office: Evaluation and Sustainability of Stratified Policing

Since 2014, Drs. Roberto and Rachel Santos have partnered with the Walton County, FL Sheriff’s Office to implement, evaluate, and sustain Stratified Policing and evidence-based practices.  The partnership has included a comprehensive organizational assessment, recommendations for implementation of Stratified Policing, training for sworn personnel and advanced training for crime analysis personnel. Drs. Santos continue to work with and provide assistance to the agency. The following is a peer reviewed academic article with results from the survey that examine organizational change in the Sheriff's Office.

Santos, R.G. (2018) Police organizational change after implementing crime analysis and evidence-based strategies through stratified policing.  Policing: A Journal of Policy and Practice,  12(3), 288-302.

Abstract:  This article presents the findings from an evaluation of one sheriff’s office in Florida. Evidence-based policing strategies and crime analysis were implemented within the agency through ‘stratified policing’, an organizational framework to facilitate the systematic implementation of evidence-based practices through problem solving, analysis, and accountability. Crime analysis is an integral part of stratified policing and is the foundation on which all evidence-based practices are implemented and evaluated within the approach. While the agency saw crime reductions after implementation of stratified policing, when implementing and sustaining new practices throughout a police organization, it is important to evaluate components of organizational change. Thus, two waves of the same anonymous online survey were administered to agency personnel to obtain their perceptions about leadership, accountability, communication, and transparency occurring within the agency’s crime reduction efforts as well as the frequency of proactive crime reduction activities. Comparisons of the mean results for the two waves (i.e. baseline and one year of implementation) show significant increases in the amount of crime reduction activities in addition to significant improvements in leadership, accountability, communication, and transparency. Personnel were also more satisfied with the agency’s crime reduction efforts. The findings support stratified policing as one way to institutionalize crime analysis and evidence-based crime reduction and make important changes to sustain practices within an agency’s crime reduction culture.

See this article on the agency’s implementation of Stratified Policing:  Sheriff's Office touts statistical policing

Bureau of Justice Assistance Crime Analysis Capabilities Project

Dr. Rachel Santos served a subject matter expert for the Institute for Intergovernmental Research, Bureau of Justice Assistance for the “Crime Analysis Capability Project” funded by Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA).  She lead a team that oversaw the project design and provided technical assistance for the implementation of three projects to implement crime analysis into a medium sized-agency, a real time crime center, and for a regional initiative. In addition, she helped to monitored each project’s progress and lead the development of a Crime Analysis Toolkit based on the results of the agencies’ implementation and crime analysis best practices for BJA.

Greensboro, NC: Stratified Policing, Community Engagement, and Resource Allocation

Dr. Rachel Santos partnered with the Greensboro, NC Police Department and conducted training of sworn and crime analysis personnel, an organizational assessment and in depth assistance with the implementation of Stratified Policing, community engagement, and resource allocation. The work was funded by the agency as well as a grant from the Office of Community Policing Services.

Increasing Analytical Capacity: Training for the Law Enforcement Executive

Drs. Rachel and Roberto Santos partnered with the National Police Foundation in Washington D.C. and the International Association of Crime Analysts to develop curriculum and system for training delivery to law enforcement executives on proactive policing strategies for crime reduction and crime analysis. Funded by the Bureau of Justice Assistance, a team of trainers including a police leader, researcher, and crime analyst conducted training around the country to groups of police agency leaders at regional sites as well as at the Southern Policing Institute at the University of Louisville. 

Implementing CompStat and Crime Analysis in Maryland Police Agencies

With over $1 million in funding from the State of Maryland Governor’s Office of Crime Control and Prevention, Drs. Rachel and Roberto Santos partnered with the University of Maryland, Institute for Governmental Service and Research, to assist 100 agencies throughout the State of Maryland in their implementation of CompStat, Crime Analysis, and Stratified Policing.  A comprehensive framework for delivery of training and technical assistance was developed which included 1) a best practices seminar for police executives, 2) a needs assessment process that resulted in specific recommendations for implementation, 3) training for sworn and crime analysis personnel, 4) a workshop for implementation plan development, and 4) in depth on site assistance.  The initiative succeeded in training most of the agencies and hundreds of their sworn and crime analysis personnel, conducting over 30 assessments, and providing in depth assistance to a number of agencies for the successful implementation of Stratified Policing. 

Port St. Lucie, FL Police Department: Institutionalizing Problem Solving, Analysis, and Accountability

This project, funded by several grants from the Office of Community-Oriented Policing Services, began in 2004 with the goal of institutionalizing problem solving, crime analysis, and accountability into the Port St. Lucie, FL Police Department.  Dr. Rachel [Boba] Santos worked closely with the agency as a research partner to develop standard crime analysis products, policies, and practices for an organizational system to support proactive crime reduction.  Funding also supported the evaluation of the implementation and the publication of two guidebooks to support other agencies in implementing the organizational model. Dr. Roberto Santos played a key role in the development and implementation of the strategies in the police department and in writing of the publications and research articles. “Stratified Policing” was born from this initial work with the Port St. Lucie, FL Police Department. It has been enhanced over the years by Drs. Santos and implemented by many other agencies around the country and internationally. The work received the first ever International Association of Chiefs of Police Law Enforcement-Research Award in 2008 and the following are publications that were a direct result of this partnership:

Santos, R.B. (2013). Implementation of a police organizational model for crime reduction.  Policing: An International Journal of Police Strategies and Management,   32 (2) 295-311.

Santos, R.B., & Santos, R.G. (2012). The role of leadership in implementing a police organizational model for crime reduction and accountability.  Policing: A Journal of Policy and Practice, 6 (4), 344-353.

Boba [Santos], R., & Santos, R.G. (2011).  A police organizational model for crime reduction: Institutionalizing problem solving, analysis, and accountability.  Washington DC: Office of Community Oriented Policing Services.

Santos, R.G. (February 2011).  Systematic pattern response strategy: Protecting the beehive.    FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin.

Boba [Santos], R. (2011).  Institutionalization of problem solving, analysis, and accountability in the Port St. Lucie, FL Police Department.   Washington DC: Office of Community Oriented Policing Services.

Boba [Santos], R. (2010). A practice-based evidence approach in Florida.  Police Practice and Research, Special Issue: The Evolving Relationship between Police Research and Police Practice, 11  (2), 122-128.

Boba [Santos], R., & Crank, J. (2008). Institutionalizing problem-oriented policing: Rethinking problem identification, analysis, and accountability.  Police Practice and Research, 9 (5), 379-393.

Boba [Santos], R., & Santos, R.G. (2007). Single-family home construction site theft: A crime prevention case study.  International Journal of Construction Education and Research, 3 (3), 217-236.

Filter by Post Type

• Announcements
• OnPolicing Blog
• Press Releases
• Publications

Featured Projects

National Law Enforcement Roadway Safety Program (NLERSP)

Enhancing Procedural Justice in Hot Spots Policing

Rural Violent Crime Reduction Initiative

Active projects, refine results, strategic priority area(s), topic area(s), location(s).

A Multi-Site Evaluation of Automated License Plate Readers

Academic Training to Inform Police Responses: A National Initiative to Enhance Police Engagement with People with Behavioral Health Conditions and Developmental Disabilities

Accreditation of Mexican Law Enforcement Agencies, Police Communications Centers and Police Academies to International Standards

Adverse Impacts of Organizational Stress on Officer Health and Wellness: Causes, Correlates, and Mitigation

Building the Evidence Base on De-escalation Training for Law Enforcement: A Multi-Agency Randomized Controlled Trial

Collaborative Reform Initiative Program – Critical Response

Community Policing and Procedural Justice in Jail Settings

Confidence, Latency, and Accuracy in Eyewitness Identifications Made from Show-Ups: Evidence from the Lab, the Field and Current Law Enforcement Practices

Considerations for Specialized Units: A Guide for State and Local Law Enforcement Agencies to Ensure Appropriateness, Effectiveness, and Accountability

CS360: Enhancing a Powerful Tool by Integrating Community Policing

Evaluation of the Bridges to Life Parole Reentry Program

Examining Police Reforms in New Jersey: Statewide Evaluation of Changes to Use of Force Policies and Training

• Next »

Completed Projects

21st Century Policing Task Force Report: The First Five Years

Advancing Policing Through Continuous Action

Averted School Violence (ASV) Data Collection Platform

COVID-19 Initiatives, Resources & Tools for the Field

Evaluation of Texas Health Resources’ Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner Program

Review of the LAPD Response to First Amendment Assemblies and Protests

Small Agency Response to Incidents Involving Persons with Mental Illness or Substance Abuse Issues

Strategies for Policing Innovation (SPI) in Wilmington, DE

Technology Innovations in Public Safety

VALOR: Officer Safety & Wellness Research, Training, and Evaluation

• Strategic Priorities
• Board of Directors
• Business Strategies Advisory Group
• Partnerships
• Data Science Blog
• Community Partnerships
• Preventing Crime & Violence
• Innovations & Technology
• Policing Strategies & Operations
• Personnel & Staffing
• Police Administration & Organizations
• Media Resources
• I am a: Community Member
• I am a: Law Enforcement Professional
• I am a: Business/Corporation
• Past Honorees
• Patrick V. Murphy Award
• Hubert Williams Award

Cookies on GOV.UK

We use some essential cookies to make this website work.

We’d like to set additional cookies to understand how you use GOV.UK, remember your settings and improve government services.

We also use cookies set by other sites to help us deliver content from their services.

You have accepted additional cookies. You can change your cookie settings at any time.

You have rejected additional cookies. You can change your cookie settings at any time.

• Crime, justice and law
• Policing front line review
• Home Office

Key themes in qualitative research projects with police forces in England and Wales: Appendix 1 (accessible version)

Updated 9 January 2023

© Crown copyright 2023

This publication is licensed under the terms of the Open Government Licence v3.0 except where otherwise stated. To view this licence, visit nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3 or write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: [email protected] .

Where we have identified any third party copyright information you will need to obtain permission from the copyright holders concerned.

This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/front-line-policing-review/key-themes-in-qualitative-research-projects-with-police-forces-in-england-and-wales-appendix-1

1. Introduction

This paper provides a high-level overview of the methodologies used in the qualitative research undertaken with police forces that informed the paper.

The key themes outlined in the paper are drawn from the findings of qualitative data collection and analysis across 11 projects completed between June 2016 and January 2019. 10 of the 11 projects underwent ethical review and clearance with the University of Northampton Research Ethics Committee and 1 project was reviewed and cleared by the University of Leicester Research Ethics Committee. Each of the projects adheres to the same data protection legislation and protocol; in particular, all participants were given information about their involvement in the research and gave their informed consent. Data is held securely in encrypted files in the systems administered by the University of Northampton, only accessible by the researchers named in each project.

The project reports are confidential; however, forces have agreed to the findings being used to inform academic, policy and practice improvement, with assurances of anonymity in publicly available documents. A brief description of each project methodology is provided below.

For the purpose of informing the Front Line Review with qualitative insights, the findings from qualitative data and analysis was used, and the quantitative results were not.

This paper draws upon qualitative research projects, which predominantly use semi-structured interviews for data collection, but also draw upon focus groups and online surveys where appropriate. All participation was voluntary and was not incentivised through payment or rewards. Sampling was designed based on the research aims and questions for each project and employed a ‘self-selection’ model, where invitations to participate in the research project were sent to, shared with and/or verbally communicated with those individuals and roles appropriate to the area of study.

In terms of analysis of data, apart from one project which used grounded theory (Glaser, 1992), thematic analysis was used. This means interview transcripts and focus group transcripts were thematically analysed involving six steps: ‘familiarisation’ through reading and re-reading transcripts, ‘code generation’, ‘theme identification’, ‘review’ of themes and codes, ‘labelling themes’ and ‘report writing’ (Braun and Clarke, 2006). For open-text responses within online surveys, each response was given a descriptive code, codes were themed and categorised into labelled themes. Thematic analysis undertaken in this way enables the language to remain relevant and reflective of participants perceptions and experience and to fairly reflect the breadth and depth of data collected.

3. Brief Project Descriptions

1) A qualitative study of frontline experiences in one medium-size police force in England, exploring workload, wellbeing, support and partnership working. This project was undertaken in 2016 and involved 37 semi-structured interviews with serving police officers. Participants included representatives from the following roles: Police Constable, Detective Constable, Police Community Support Officer, Control Room Staff, Detention Officer and Community Safety Officer.

2) A study in one police-force in England in 2017, exploring provision of support services, perceptions and experiences of issues affecting wellbeing and the organisational response. 103 officers and staff participated in focus group discussions. 1,269 participants took part in an online survey, which included a small number of open questions, enabling collation of descriptive responses in the participants own words.

3) A project undertaken in 2016 to explore the confidence of police officers and staff in their specialist roles. An online survey was conducted, providing open-text response opportunities for participants to describe their perceptions and experiences, addressing the processes, systems and cultural blockers to greater efficacy in role. In particular, the survey provided participants the opportunity to describe their skills, training experience and needs, and relationships between teams and departments which may enable improvements. 524 police officers and staff completed the survey across the five forces.

4) National surveys of Special Constables and Police Support Volunteers were undertaken in 2016, engaging 3,084 participants across all forces in England and Wales and again in 2018, completed by 1,829 Special Constables and 1,205 Police Support Volunteers. Both surveys provided open text response opportunities to expand on perceptions and experiences in policing. Three reports have been made publicly available sharing these results, and two academic papers have been published, exploring the data in greater depth. Contact [email protected] for copies.

5) Research undertaken to explore perceptions and cultures amongst the regular, paid police service towards the Special Constabulary and wider volunteering in policing was undertaken during 2017 and 2018. The study utilised semi-structured interviews and an online survey. Data collection was conducted across five police forces in England and Wales, including large and smaller forces. 1,493 regular, paid police officers across a wide range of roles participated in the survey. 47 interviews were conducted with regular police officers across three of those five forces. The survey provided open-text response opportunities. The research paper is under review for publication. Please contact [email protected] for further information regarding access to the paper.

6) A study of workforce culture was undertaken with a police force in England in 2018, engaging 1,820 police officers and staff in an online survey and 56 police officers and staff in focus group discussions.

7) A research project was undertaken with five police forces, exploring perceptions and experiences working in specialist roles in policing. 601 police officers and staff participated in an online survey and 40 police officers and staff participated in focus groups.

8) A study was conducted with one police force evaluating the impact of an initiative to address workforce performance, effectiveness, resilience and wellbeing. 102 police officers and staff participated in pre- and post-intervention questionnaires over an 18-month period. The questionnaires captured wellbeing measures, and open-text descriptions of key factors affecting performance, wellbeing and the impact of the initiative.

9) A qualitative evaluation of the implementation of mental health triage was undertaken with three police forces in England and Wales, exploring issues, barriers and opportunities to improving outputs and outcomes. 27 semi-structured interviews were conducted with police officers and staff from relevant partner agencies. A paper drawing upon this data is currently being reviewed for a Special Edition for the Journal of Psychiatric and Mental Health Nursing, please contact [email protected] for information about the release of this paper.

10) Qualitative research was undertaken with Special Constables and Police Support Volunteers across three police forces in England and Wales, exploring perceptions and experiences in policing culture, relationships with regular, paid police officers and staff, skills, activities and impact on police service provision. 74 semi-structured interviews were conducted with Special Constables and Police Support Volunteers. Two peer-review publications are available, please contact [email protected] for copies.

11) A PhD case study of one police force in England sought to explore police cultures, community policing, legitimacy and procedural justice, completed in 2017. Data were collected through semi structured interviews and focus groups. 78 people participated in the study, comprising 31 interviews with police officers, 32 interviews with community members and three focus groups with 15 individuals. The grounded theory method (Glaser and Strauss, 1967; Glaser, 1992) was used in analysis of the data, which involves the rigorous use of tools to ensure a reliable connection between the data collected and theory developed (Bryman, 2004:273).

4. Papers published related to the above projects:

Britton, I. and Callender, M. (2018). Strategic direction and leadership in the Special Constabulary. In: K. Bullock and A. Millie, eds. The Special Constabulary: historical context, international comparisons and contemporary themes. Abingdon: Routledge, 149–168.

Britton, I, Wolf, R. and Callender, M. (2018) A comparative case study of Reserve Deputies in a Florida sheriff’s office and Special Constables in an English police force. International Journal of Police Science and Management, 20, (4), 259-271.

Callender, M., Cahalin, K., Cole, S., Hubbard, L. and Britton, I. (2018). ‘Understanding the Motivations, Morale, and Retention of Special Constables: Findings from a National Survey.’ Policing: A Journal of Policy and Practice.

Callender, M., Pepper, M., Cahalin, K. and Britton, I. (2018). ‘Exploring the police support volunteer experience: findings from a national survey.’ Policing and Society: An International Journal of Research and Policy. DOI: 10.1080/10439463.2018.1432613

5. References

Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2006). ‘Using thematic analysis in psychology’. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 3, (2), 77-101.

Bryman, A. (2004). Social Research Methods. (2nd Ed.) Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Glaser, B. G. (1992). Basics of Grounded Theory Analysis. Mill Valley, California: Sociology Press.

Glaser, B. G. and Strauss, A. L. (1967). The Discovery of Grounded Theory: Strategies for Qualitative Research. Chicago: Aldine.

Tracy, S.J. (2013). Qualitative research methods: collecting evidence, crafting analysis, communicating impact, Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell.

Please contact Dr Laura Knight for further information: Dr Laura Knight, Director, Institute for Public Safety, Crime and Justice [email protected] 07850 260 029

Is this page useful?

• Yes this page is useful
• No this page is not useful

Help us improve GOV.UK

Don’t include personal or financial information like your National Insurance number or credit card details.

To help us improve GOV.UK, we’d like to know more about your visit today. Please fill in this survey (opens in a new tab) .

Online fraud research hub

Our online fraud research hub brings together different strands of research from the Police Foundation, Crest Advisory, University College London and Perpetuity Research. The hub will disseminate learning to help to improve our understanding of online fraud and inform future policymaking.

Other current projects

Blueprints: designing local policing models for the 21st century, tackling online fraud, policing young adults, the disruption of serious and organised crime, recently completed projects, contact and confidence: improving police-public interactions with technology, the strategic review of policing in england and wales, improving the law enforcement response to online child sexual exploitation and abuse, understanding the lessons of policing the covid-19 pandemic, victimisation and fear of crime in the gig economy, understanding pension scams and the effectiveness of the public policy response, understanding the public’s priorities for policing, digital forensics: the next steps, privacy overview.

Want to receive news about our latest research, publications and events? Keep up to date by signing up to our newsletter.

Sign up now

• Researchers Study What Happens When Officers Break the Law

UM, Old Dominion professors examine factors that influence punishment for errant police officers

OXFORD, Miss. – Law enforcement officers are statistically more likely to get away with crimes than civilians. And police officers often face less severe punishment than civilians once convicted.

But a new study indicates that multiple factors influence whether an officer is ever charged and how harshly he or she is sentenced.

Francis Boateng, associate professor of criminal justice and legal studies at the University of Mississippi , and Old Dominion University professor Daniel Pryce have studied the complex factors that influence decision-making in criminal cases against police officers. Their results were published in the American Journal of Criminal Justice .

"There is always the question, 'Who polices the police?'" Boateng said. "Well, the police do. Then what happens when they commit a crime?

"That question led us to investigate these decisions about police officers who have been arrested for engaging in criminal behavior."

Boateng and Pryce studied more than 6,000 criminal cases and found that on-duty officers are less likely to be severely punished than those who are off duty. Additionally, cases involving children, women or drugs often brought harsher punishments.

The researchers also found that the higher the person's rank, the more likely the officer was to be given a harsher punishment.

"Understanding how officers are punished by their agencies and the court system is important," said Pryce, associate professor and associate chair of the ODU Department of Sociology and Criminal Justice. "If we know that when an officer commits a crime, that person will be held responsible for their actions, that makes us feel more confident as citizens.

"We do know that, yes, officers tend to get punished less severely, if you compare them to regular citizens, and that's in large part because of qualified immunity and unions."

Qualified immunity is a legal protection that shields officers from being charged or sued for actions necessary to their job, such as handcuffing or restraining someone. Without qualified immunity, every arrest would be a kidnapping, but officers have also used the law against allegations of assault, misconduct and murder .

"The qualified immunity clause needs to change because it is not only a hindrance to punishment or prosecution charges for police crimes, but it also encourages officers to engage in misconduct because if I am a police officer, and I know if I engage in this behavior, it will be difficult for me to be charged, I will do it," Boateng said.

"That is probably one of the reasons why some of these police officers are quick to shoot, quick to kill, engage in all kinds of behavior, and so many of them go free. The qualified immunity clause simply puts the officer above the law."

Police unions are another barrier to the prosecution of officers, Pryce said. Officers often pay dues to their local union, which in turn provides a lawyer for officers who find themselves accused of crimes.

"It's true that police unions will quickly fall behind and support an officer – even bad officers – but we also know that when a prosecutor decides to prosecute a case against an officer, it's likely to go through the entire legal process," he said.

Although the researchers found that some of the infrastructure of policing can be exploited in favor of officers, the evidence suggests many local law enforcement agencies do a good job overall of policing their officers, Boateng and Pryce said.

Those departments that do not, however, often erode trust in their community and in the profession.

"In 72% of the cases where an officer was charged, that officer was convicted, Boateng said. "That is significant. That shows that the criminal justice system is responsive to these cases.

"The internal mechanism for 'Who polices the police?' can work."

Neither Boateng nor Pryce called for more oversight of departments that have a proven history of success. But departments with repeated failures should have more supervision, they agreed.

"What I want people to take away from the study is that police departments tend to self-police themselves, but they can do better – they can do more," Pryce said. "This research is important in the sense that police legitimacy is important for the community.

"If there's no trust, the police can't rely on us to help provide information. It's a vicious cycle. If we don't trust them, they can't trust us."

Clara Turnage

Office, Department or Center

• University Marketing and Communications

May 15, 2024

• School of Applied Sciences
• Research News

9 Undergraduate Research Projects That Wowed Us This Year

The telegraph. The polio vaccine. The bar code. Light beer. Throughout its history, NYU has been known for innovation, with faculty and alumni in every generation contributing to some of the most notable inventions and scientific breakthroughs of their time. But you don’t wind up in the history books—or peer-reviewed journals—by accident; academic research, like any specialized discipline, takes hard work and lots of practice. 

And at NYU, for students who are interested, that training can start early—including during an undergraduate's first years on campus. Whether through assistantships in faculty labs, summer internships, senior capstones, or independent projects inspired by coursework, undergrad students have many opportunities to take what they’re learning in the classroom and apply it to create original scholarship throughout their time at NYU. Many present their work at research conferences, and some even co-author work with faculty and graduate students that leads to publication. 

As 2023-2024 drew to a close, the NYU News team coordinated with the Office of the Provost to pull together a snapshot of the research efforts that students undertook during this school year. The nine featured here represent just a small fraction of the impressive work we encountered in fields ranging from biology, chemistry, and engineering to the social sciences, humanities, and the arts. 

These projects were presented at NYU research conferences for undergrads, including Migration and Im/Mobility , Pathways for Discovery: Undergraduate Research and Writing Symposium , Social Impact: NYU’s Applied Undergraduate Research Conference , Arts-Based Undergraduate Research Conference , Gallatin Student Research Conference ,  Dreammaker’s Summit , Tandon’s Research Excellence Exhibit , and Global Engagement Symposium . Learn more about these undergrad research opportunities and others.

Jordan Janowski (CAS '24)

Sade Chaffatt (NYU Abu Dhabi '24)

Elsa Nyongesa (GPH, CAS ’24 )

Anthony Offiah (Gallatin ’26)

Kimberly Sinchi (Tandon ’24) and Sarah Moughal (Tandon ’25)

Rohan Bajaj (Stern '24)

Lizette Saucedo (Liberal Studies ’24)

Eva Fuentes (CAS '24)

Andrea Durham (Tandon ’26)

Jordan Janowski (CAS ’24) Major: Biochemistry Thesis title: “Engineering Chirality for Functionality in Crystalline DNA”

Jordan Janowski (CAS '24). Photo by Tracey Friedman

I work in the Structural DNA Nanotechnology Lab, which was founded by the late NYU professor Ned Seeman, who is known as the father of the field. My current projects are manipulating DNA sequences to self-assemble into high order structures.

Essentially, we’re using DNA as a building material, instead of just analyzing it for its biological functions. It constantly amazes me that this is possible.

I came in as a pre-med student, but when I started working in the lab I realized that I was really interested in continuing my research there. I co-wrote a paper with postdoc Dr. Simon Vecchioni who has been a mentor to me and helped me navigate applying to grad school. I’m headed to Scripps Research in the fall. This research experience has led me to explore some of the molecules that make up life and how they could be engineered into truly unnatural curiosities and technologies.

My PI, Prof. Yoel Ohayon , has been super supportive of my place on the  NYU women’s basketball team, which I’m a  member of. He’s been coming to my games since sophomore year, and he’ll text me with the score and “great game!”— it’s been so nice to have that support for my interests beyond the lab.

Anthony Offiah (Gallatin ’26) Concentration: Fashion design and business administration MLK Scholars research project title: “project: DREAMER”

Anthony Offiah (Gallatin '26). Photo by Tracey Friedman

In “project: DREAMER,” I explored how much a person’s sense of fashion is a result of their environment or societal pressures based on their identity. Certain groups are pressured or engineered to present a certain way, and I wanted to see how much of the opposing force—their character, their personality—affected their sense of style. 

This was a summer research project through the MLK Scholars Program . I did ethnographic interviews with a few people, and asked them to co-design their ideal garments with me. They told me who they are, how they identify, and what they like in fashion, and we synthesized that into their dream garments. And then we had a photo shoot where they were empowered to make artistic choices. 

Some people told me they had a hard time conveying their sense of style because they were apprehensive about being the center of attention or of being dissimilar to the people around them. So they chose to conform to protect themselves. And then others spoke about wanting to safeguard the artistic or vulnerable—or one person used the word “feminine”—side of them so they consciously didn’t dress how they ideally would. 

We ended the interviews by stating an objective about how this co-designing process didn’t end with them just getting new clothes—it was about approaching fashion differently than how they started and unlearning how society might put them in a certain box without their approval.  

My concentration in Gallatin is fashion design and business administration. In the industry some clothing is critiqued and some clothing is praised—and navigating that is challenging, because what you like might not be well received. So doing bespoke fashion for just one person is freeing in a sense because you don’t have to worry about all that extra stuff. It’s just the art. And I like being an artist first and thinking about the business second.

Lizette Saucedo (Global Liberal Studies ’24) Major: Politics, rights, and development Thesis title: “Acknowledging and Remembering Deceased Migrants Crossing the U.S.-Mexican Border”

Lizette Saucedo (Global Liberal Studies '24). Photo by Tracey Friedman

My thesis project is on commemorating migrants who are dying on their journey north to cross the U.S.–Mexican border. I look at it through different theoretical lenses, and one of the terms is necropolitics—how politics shapes the way the State governs life and especially death. And then of the main issues aside from the deaths is that a lot of people in the U.S. don’t know about them, due to the government trying to eschew responsibility for migrant suffering. In the final portion of the thesis, I argue for presenting what some researchers call “migrant artifacts”—the personal belongings left behind by people trying to cross over—to the public, so that people can become aware and have more of a human understanding of what’s going on. 

This is my senior thesis for Liberal Studies, but the idea for it started in an International Human Rights course I took with professor Joyce Apsel . We read a book by Jason De León called The Land of the Open Graves , which I kept in the back of my mind. And then when I studied abroad in Germany during my junior year, I noticed all the different memorials and museums, and wondered why we didn’t have the equivalent in the U.S. My family comes from Mexico—my parents migrated—and ultimately all of these interests came together.

I came into NYU through the Liberal Studies program and I loved it. It’s transdisciplinary, which shaped how I view my studies. My major is politics, rights, and development and my minor is social work, but I’ve also studied museum studies, and I’ve always loved the arts. The experience of getting to work one-on-one on this thesis has really fortified my belief that I can combine all those things.

Sade Chaffatt (Abu Dhabi ’24) Major: Biology Thesis title: “The Polycomb repressive component, EED in mouse hepatocytes regulates liver homeostasis and survival following partial hepatectomy.”

Sade Chaffatt (NYU Abu Dhabi '24). Photo courtesy of NYUAD

Imagine your liver as a room. Within the liver there are epigenetic mechanisms that control gene expression. Imagine these epigenetic mechanisms as a dimmer switch, so that you could adjust the light in the room. If we remove a protein that is involved in regulating these mechanisms, there might be dysregulation—as though the light is too bright or too dim. One such protein, EED, plays a crucial role in regulating gene expression. And so my project focuses on investigating whether EED is required in mouse hepatocytes to regulate liver homeostasis and to regulate survival following surgical resection.

Stepping into the field of research is very intimidating when you’re an undergraduate student and know nothing. But my capstone mentor, Dr. Kirsten Sadler , encourages students to present their data at lab meetings and to speak with scientists. Even though this is nerve-wracking, it helps to promote your confidence in communicating science to others in the field.

If you’d asked 16-year-old me, I never would’ve imagined that I’d be doing research at this point. Representation matters a lot, and you often don't see women—especially not Black women—in research. Being at NYUAD has really allowed me to see more women in these spaces. Having had some experience in the medical field through internships, I can now say I’m more interested in research and hope to pursue a PhD in the future.

Kimberly Sinchi (Tandon ’24) Major: Computer Science Sarah Moughal (Tandon ’25) Major: Computer Science Project: Robotic Design Team's TITAN

Sarah Moughal (Tandon '25, left) and Kimberly Sinchi (Tandon '24). Photo by Tracey Friedman

Kimberly: The Robotic Design Team has been active at NYU for at least five years. We’re 60-plus undergrad and grad students majoring in electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, computer science, and integrated design. We’ve named our current project TITAN because of how huge it is. TITAN stands for “Tandon’s innovation in terraforming and autonomous navigation.”

Sarah: We compete in NASA’s lunatics competition every year, which means we build a robot from scratch to be able to compete in lunar excavation and construction. We make pretty much everything in house in the Tandon MakerSpace, and everyone gets a little experience with machining, even if you're not mechanical. A lot of it is about learning how to work with other people—communicating across majors and disciplines and learning how to explain our needs to someone who may not be as well versed in particular technologies as we are. 

Kimberly: With NYU’s Vertically Integrated Project I’ve been able to take what I was interested in and actually have a real world impact with it. NASA takes notes on every Rover that enters this competition. What worked and what didn’t actually influences their designs for rovers they send to the moon and to Mars.

Eva Fuentes (CAS ’24) Major: Anthropology Thesis title: “Examining the relationship between pelvic shape and numbers of lumbar vertebrae in primates”

Eva Fuentes (CAS '24). Photo by Tracey Friedman

I came into NYU thinking I wanted to be an art history major with maybe an archeology minor. To do the archeology minor, you have to take the core classes in anthropology, and so I had to take an intro to human evolution course. I was like, this is the coolest thing I’ve learned—ever. So I emailed people in the department to see if I could get involved. 

Since my sophomore year, I’ve been working in the Evolutionary Morphology Lab with Scott Williams, who is primarily interested in the vertebral column of primates in the fossil record because of how it can inform the evolution of posture and locomotion in humans.

For my senior thesis, I’m looking at the number of lumbar vertebrae—the vertebrae that are in the lower back specifically—and aspects of pelvic shape to see if it is possible to make inferences about the number of lumbar vertebrae a fossil may have had. The bones of the lower back are important because they tell us about posture and locomotion.

I committed to a PhD program at Washington University in St. Louis a few weeks ago to study biological anthropology. I never anticipated being super immersed in the academic world. I don’t come from an academic family. I had no idea what I was doing when I started, but Scott Williams, and everyone in the lab, is extremely welcoming and easy to talk to. It wasn't intimidating to come into this lab at all.

Elsa Nyongesa (GPH, CAS ’24 ) Major: Global Public Health and Biology Project: “Diversity in Breast Oncological Studies: Impacts on Black Women’s Health Outcomes”

Elsa Nyongesa (GPH, CAS '24). Photo by Tracey Friedman

I interned at Weill Cornell Medicine through their Travelers Summer Research Fellowship Program where I worked with my mentor, Dr. Lisa Newman, who is the head of the International Center for the Study of Breast Cancer Subtypes. I analyzed data on the frequency of different types of breast cancer across racial and ethnic groups in New York. At the same time, I was also working with Dr. Rachel Kowolsky to study minority underrepresentation in clinical research. 

In an experiential learning course taught by Professor Joyce Moon Howard in the GPH department, I created a research question based on my internship experience. I thought about how I could combine my experiences from the program which led to my exploration of the correlation between minority underrepresentation in breast oncological studies, and how it affects the health outcomes of Black women with breast cancer.

In my major, we learn about the large scope of health disparities across different groups. This opportunity allowed me to learn more about these disparities in the context of breast cancer research. As a premedical student, this experience broadened my perspective on health. I learned more about the social, economic, and environmental factors influencing health outcomes. It also encouraged me to examine literature more critically to find gaps in knowledge and to think about potential solutions to health problems. Overall, this experience deepened my philosophy of service, emphasizing the importance of health equity and advocacy at the research and clinical level.

Rohan Bajaj (Stern ’24) Major: Finance and statistics Thesis title: “Measuring Socioeconomic Changes and Investor Attitude in Chicago’s Post-Covid Economic Recovery”

Rohan Bajaj (Stern '24). Photo by Tracey Friedman

My thesis is focused on understanding the effects of community-proposed infrastructure on both the socioeconomic demographics of cities and on fiscal health. I’m originally from Chicago, so it made a lot of sense to pay tribute back to the place that raised me. I’m compiling a list of characteristics of infrastructure that has been developed since 2021 as a part of the Chicago Recovery Plan and then assessing how neighborhoods have changed geographically and economically. 

I’m looking at municipal bond yields in Chicago as a way of evaluating the fiscal health of the city. Turns out a lot of community-proposed infrastructure is focused in lower income areas within Chicago rather than higher income areas. So that makes the research question interesting, to see if there’s a correlation between the proposed and developed infrastructure projects, and if these neighborhoods are being gentrified alongside development.

I kind of stumbled into the impact investing industry accidentally from an internship I had during my time at NYU. I started working at a renewable energies brokerage in midtown, where my main job was collecting a lot of market research trends and delivering insights on how these different energy markets would come into play. I then worked with the New York State Insurance Fund, where I helped construct and execute their sustainable investment strategy from the ground up. 

I also took a class called “Design with Climate Change” with Peter Anker in Gallatin during my junior year, and a lot of that class was focused on how to have climate resilient and publicly developed infrastructure, and understanding the effects it has on society. It made me start thinking about the vital role that physical surroundings play in steering communities.

In the short term I want to continue diving into impact-focused investing and help identify urban planners and city government to develop their communities responsibly and effectively.

Andrea Durham (Tandon, ’26)  Major: Biomolecular science Research essay title: “The Rise and Fall of Aduhelm”

Andrea Durham (Tandon '26). Photo by Tracey Friedman

This is an essay I wrote last year in an advanced college essay writing class with Professor Lorraine Doran on the approval of a drug for Alzheimer’s disease called Aduhelm—a monoclonal antibody therapy developed by Biogen in 2021, which was described as being momentous and groundbreaking. But there were irregularities ranging from the design of its clinical trials to government involvement that led to the resignation of three scientists on an advisory panel, because not everybody in the scientific community agreed that it should be approved.

When I was six years old, my grandmother was diagnosed. Seeing the impact that it had over the years broke my heart and ignited a passion in me to pursue research. 

When I started at NYU, I wasn’t really sure what I was going to do in the future, or what opportunities I would go after. This writing class really gave me an opportunity to reflect on the things that were important to me in my life. The September after I wrote this paper, I started volunteering in a lab at Mount Sinai for Alzheimer's disease research, and that’s what I’m doing now—working as a volunteer at the Center for Molecular Integrative Neuroresilience under Dr. Giulio Pasinetti. I have this opportunity to be at the forefront, and because of the work I did in my writing class I feel prepared going into these settings with an understanding of the importance of conducting ethical research and working with integrity.

Official websites use .gov

A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS

A lock ( ) or https:// means you've safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Prevention Research Centers Special Interest Projects NOFO

Deadline for Applications: March 4, 2024 by 11:59 PM Eastern time

This Notice of Funding Opportunity, or NOFO (RFA-DP-24-062) invites applications from CDC Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Research Centers (PRCs), selected for funding under RFA-DP-24-004, to apply for supplemental funding to conduct Special Interest Research Projects (SIPs) to inform public health practice.

Approximately $36,075,000 is available for the period of performance (9/30/2024–9/29/2029). CDC anticipates making up to 28 awards under this NOFO. Awards issued under this NOFO are contingent upon the availability of funds and receipt of a sufficient number of meritorious applications.

The purpose of this NOFO is for awarded PRCs to conduct high-quality applied health promotion and disease prevention research projects in real-world settings to identify, design, test, evaluate, disseminate, and translate interventions (i.e., programs, practices, policies, or strategies) to prevent and reduce risk for the leading causes of illness, disability, and death in the United States.

SIPs are supplemental funding awards that focus on topics of interest or gaps in knowledge or research and can also support the development of state and local public health interventions and policies. SIP topics are aligned with public health priorities, such as the Healthy People 2030 Objectives—the Health and Human Services’ national objectives for improving Americans’ health. SIPs are sponsored and primarily funded by CDC Centers, Institutes, and Offices (CIOs).

SIPs can have different structures including funding one or multiple PRCs to conduct community-based applied prevention research projects:

• Single PRC: The SIP supports one PRC to conduct a specific research project.
• Multiple PRCs: The SIP supports two or more PRCs to conduct different dimensions of a research project or to test strategies in different populations.
• Thematic Research Networks: The SIP supports multiple PRCs that collaborate on research of a specific health issue.

PRCs selected for funding under RFA-DP-24-004 are encouraged to apply for SIPs that expand and strengthen their PRC’s mission and increase their applied public health research activities—to contribute to preventing and reducing risk for the leading causes of illness, disability, and death in the United States.

Eligible PRCs funded under RFA-DP-24-004:

• Emory University
• Georgia State University
• Harvard School of Public Heath
• Morehouse School of Medicine
• New York University School of Medicine
• San Diego State University
• University of Arizona
• University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
• University of California, San Francisco
• University of Iowa
• University of Massachusetts Medical School Worcester
• University of Michigan at Ann Arbor
• University of Minnesota
• University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
• University of Pennsylvania
• University of Pittsburgh
• University of Rochester
• University of South Carolina at Columbia
• University of Utah
• University of Wisconsin-Madison

CDC will be hosting a pre-application informational call Thursday, February 1, 2024, 1:30–3:30pm Eastern time. Register for the call.

Letters of Intent (LOIs) are due February 2, 2024. Although LOIs are optional, they are highly encouraged and should be emailed with “NOFO RFA-DP-24-062” in the subject line to [email protected] . Please refer to NOFO “Section IV. Application and Submission Information, 3. Letter of Intent” for information to include.

Please email any questions about this NOFO to [email protected] with “NOFO RFA-DP-24-062” in the subject line. Questions must be received by February 16, 2024, 5 PM Eastern time to ensure a response by the application deadline of March 4, 2024.

• Opening date: December 15, 2023
• Pre-application information call: February 1, 2024, 1:30-3:30pm Eastern time. View the call script and presentation
• Closing date: March 4, 2024
• The last day to submit questions regarding RFA-DP-24-062 is February 16, 2024 at 5:00 PM Eastern Time.

Apply for this Funding Opportunity

Frequently Asked Questions

Submit a Question

Call Script

Submit Letter of Intent by February 2, 2024

Subscribe to Prevention Research Matters for the latest updates on the PRC Network:

Exit Notification / Disclaimer Policy

• The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) cannot attest to the accuracy of a non-federal website.
• Linking to a non-federal website does not constitute an endorsement by CDC or any of its employees of the sponsors or the information and products presented on the website.
• You will be subject to the destination website's privacy policy when you follow the link.
• CDC is not responsible for Section 508 compliance (accessibility) on other federal or private website.

3 years after announcement, Apple's East Coast hub in RTP appears to be in holding pattern

RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C. (WTVD) -- It's been three years since Apple announced its plans for a $1 billion East Coast Hub in Research Triangle Park. The project may be in a holding pattern.

Wake County, as well as Duke Energy, says they're ready to get the project off the ground and are waiting on the tech giant to move forward .

The site will be located along Little Drive in Morrisville.

Apple said the project would create a minimum of 2,700 jobs and consist of up to 682,000 square feet of office space.

A Wake County spokesperson says officials finished conducting its latest review for Apple's stormwater permit early this year and has not received any action since then, therefore cannot move the approval process forward.

Duke Energy Spokesperson Jeff Brooks says the electric company has already installed the main power lines to the area and now is waiting on development to connect everything.

ABC11 reached out to Apple and asked if the company is still planning to bring a hub to the Raleigh area. We're still waiting for a response.

Paperwork ABC11 obtained in December 2023 suggests construction will start in 2026 .

The project received grant money and Apple would have to create a minimum of 2,700 jobs to avoid defaulting on the grant.

In the first three years, jobs must pay a minimum of 133,000 dollars a year. That's almost 80 percent higher than Raleigh's median household income, according to Census data.

From the ABC11 Vault | Apple unveils $1B investment to build east coast hub in RTP

Related Topics

• RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK
• WAKE COUNTY
• MORRISVILLE
• NORTH CAROLINA NEWS
• WAKE COUNTY NEWS
• CONSTRUCTION

Top Stories

Gun violence solutions in Durham is hot topic at summit

2 juveniles injured in drive-by shooting in Durham

Tourists spending up 10 percent in Fayetteville, officials say

Soldier charged with killing his infant daughter

• 8 minutes ago

NC top cops collaborate for safer community, here's the plan

• 2 hours ago

Swimmer found dead following 5-hour search on Neuse River

16-year-old charged with DWI in deadly Raleigh crash

Crucial vote looming on DEI programs at NC universities