The Police Subculture - Police Cynicism

Citizens who have had the misfortune to run afoul of traffic codes often comment negatively about the attitude of the officer they encountered. Most citizens come away from their encounter with the perception that the officer was cold, dispassionate, and mean—particularly when a citation was issued. Most police officers develop what has been called the working personality, a mental barrier erected to shield them from emotional connection with people as well as the horrendous crime scenes and tragedies that are often a part of daily life in policing. So what may seem to the casual observer as cold and dispassionate may well be just the way that particular officer has developed to cope with the job.

True police cynicism is easy to develop because of the nature of police work. Most citizens call the police to report some type of negative incident. Often these incidents involve persons of a less than savory nature. Moreover, police officers assigned to areas that include housing projects and/or lower socio-economic neighborhoods have daily contact with poverty, addiction, and all of the other societal maladies that accompany daily life in these neighborhoods. It is not difficult to understand how officers constantly exposed to this scene can become jaded and cynical.

Reference

Balch, R. (1972). The Police Personality: Fact or Fiction? The Journal of Criminal Law, Criminology, and Police Science, 63(1), 106-119