Projects
National Study of the Impact of Technology on the Process of
Criminal Investigation in Law Enforcement Agencies
Limited research has been done examining criminal investigation practices in police organizations since the Rand (1975) and Police Executive Research Form (PERF) (Eck, 1983) studies. Additionally, previous research has been limited to medium or large departments with little or no assessment of the impact of technology on criminal investigations (Weisheit, Falcone, and Wells, 1999). To fill the current void in criminal investigation research, the JSC is currently examining the overlooked aspect of the impact of technology on the process of criminal investigation in law enforcement agencies.
To accomplish its research objectives, the JSC will first conduct a national survey of law enforcement agencies to obtain information about criminal investigation practices. The JSC will also investigate contemporary crime (i.e, computer crime) and issues particularly applicable to rural areas (i.e., agricultural crime). In addition to the surveys, the JSC will observe the investigation practices in numerous law enforcement agencies that vary in type and size. These agencies selected to be observed will be determined by their responses to the national survey and based on a set of selection criteria set forth as questions in the survey.
Finally, content analysis will be performed by the JSC on case files from the observed organizations to determine whether or not what is in the case files supports the observations. Additionally, the JSC will identify and describe statistical relationships between the use of technology, the use of scientific and physical evidence, and potential case outcomes.
Through this research, the JSC will: (1) Describe and assess the impact of technology on the process of criminal investigation in law enforcement agencies, (2) Provide insight with respect to the utility of current or proposed technology projects for criminal investigation, and (3) Provide the end-users with information about practices in other organizations for both practical and economic decision-making.
For more information, contact Dr. Kay Scarborough at 859.622.1464.
