Natural Selection Compared to Sexual Selection in the Animal World

Importance of Trifling Morphological Characters Animals do not just have colors for beautification. Various animals have colors and tints that help them to survive in the harsh conditions of the jungle. Predators are always looking for food to eat. In this regard, animals usually have colors and tint that are similar to the surrounding environment in which they live. This is highly helpful to the animals in two ways.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Natural Selection Compared to Sexual Selection in the Animal World specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Firstly, prey animals are able to use these colors and tint to disguise themselves and thus avoid being seen by predators from long distances. This is a survival mechanism to ensure that at least these animals live to maturity. Secondly, the colors and tint can work in favor of predators. When predators have colors and tint which is almost the same as that of their ecolo gical niche, they can be able to trap their prey making hunting easier. In this regard, the colors and tint act as a hunting aid thus ensuring survival of the predators. What Natural Selection Modification cannot Do Natural selection will modify the structure of any animal so that the animal can survive. However, natural selection cannot modify the structure of an animal to its disadvantage. Structural modification of animals is always in favor of the animals. Therefore, if an animal is to undergo modification of its structure that may lead to disadvantages in a given section, the modification will be slow. At the same time, the section will be undergoing modification so that it is to the advantage of the animal. Natural selection will always ensure that the best species survives while the unfit perishes. In this regard, when natural conditions of an area change, natural selection will not modify the structure of an animal so that it cannot survive. On the contrary, natural selectio n will always be modifying the structure of any animal so that it is fit to survive on the prevailing natural conditions. In a nutshell, structural modification by natural selection is always aimed at ensuring that animals survive. Difference between Species and Varieties One basic difference between species and varieties is that while species are animals or plants which belong to the same genus, varieties are organisms belonging to the same species but with slight differences. Different species though belonging to the same genus, usually exhibit high degree differences which range from physical to morphological. Organisms of different species may not even live in the same ecological niche. On the other hand, organisms of different varieties usually belong to the same species but exhibit minor differences. It is important to note that differences of varieties are mostly physical. Organisms of different varieties may even be occupying the same ecological niche contrary to organisms o f different species. In this regard, it is important to note that the differences among members of different varieties are of lesser degrees compared to those among members of different species. In more instances, varieties come about as a result of sexual selection.Advertising Looking for essay on biology? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Traits Perpetuated through Sexual Selection Basic differences among animals of the same species are usually as a result of sexual selection. This includes color, shape of the mouth and other physical characters. As far as sexual selection is concerned, the characters of the dominant males are always the prevalent ones. It is important to note that sexual selection is not responsible for survival qualities of an organism. Nonetheless, sexual traits from a dominant male always prevail among the group. The trait of domineering and fighting other male members so as to remain a dominant male are a s a result of sexual selection. The offspring of a dominant male will always be good at fighting and endowed with the best fighting mechanism. On the other hand, offspring of weak male will always be in jeopardy because they do not have the requirements to protect themselves and their female partners. Natural Selection Compared to Sexual Selection Natural selection is about survival and every animal or plant that is not best suited will perish. Natural selection separates organisms with the best characters from animals with the bad characters. The results are clear to every organism; if it is not best suited it will die. On the other hand, sexual selection is about which male is strong enough to dominate and have offspring. The male can fight but it is not necessarily that death can result. A defeated male can move from that part and relocate to another ecological niche where it can continue surviving. The characters that are gained through sexual selection are important to ensure c ontinuity of the dominant male’s lineage. However, characters gained through natural selection are vital to ensure survival of the animal. Natural selection can modify an animal to ensure that it is fit to survive. However, no such modification occurs as a result of sexual selection. In this regard, natural selection is about life and death as opposed to sexual selection. A reason as to why Darwin says that sexual selection is less rigorous than natural selection. This essay on Natural Selection Compared to Sexual Selection in the Animal World was written and submitted by user Sadie U. to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Plans, Plains, and Planes

Plans, Plains, and Planes Plans, Plains, and Planes Plans, Plains, and Planes By Mark Nichol The three words in the headline for this post, and words derived from them- listed and defined below- stem from a common source. Plan, plain, and plane all derive from the Latin adjective planus, meaning â€Å"clear,† â€Å"even,† â€Å"flat, level,† and â€Å"plain.† Plan comes from the French word meaning â€Å"map†; the English word, originally a technical term in perspective drawing, soon came to apply to any diagram or drawing; usage was extended around the same time to refer to any set of details about a project or an event. The word also describes the action of preparing for a project or event. (A planform is the contour of a mass or object as seen from above.) The adjectival use of plain stems from the Old French word meaning â€Å"even,† â€Å"flat,† and â€Å"smooth† and came also to mean â€Å"clear† or â€Å"evident† as well as â€Å"free from obstruction.† Later, additional senses of â€Å"ordinary,† â€Å"undecorated,† and â€Å"unattractive† joined those meanings. Idioms include â€Å"plain dealer,† meaning â€Å"one who is candid or honest,† â€Å"plain Jane,† for a woman of unprepossessing appearance, and â€Å"as plain as the nose on (one’s) face† as an expressive substitution for obvious. Plainclothes refers to a police officer in civilian clothing (plainclothesman was ubiquitous before female undercover police officers were common), someone who is plainspoken is frank, and a plainsong is a religious chant. In Old French, plain also means â€Å"open countryside,† and it developed the sense of â€Å"level terrain† in English, originally in reference to Salisbury Plain. A floodplain is terrain built up by deposits of soil material caused by flooding or flat land susceptible to flooding. To explain (the word, originally explane, literally means â€Å"make level†) is to make clear, but complain and complaint (and plaintive) are all unrelated, deriving from the Latin verb plangere, meaning â€Å"lament.† Plane stems directly from Latin, and its use came about to distinguish what were originally both geometric and geographical senses of plain. Except for those who practice geometry or woodworking, it is best known as a truncation of airplane (originally aeroplane), which technically alludes to the aerodynamic wings of an aircraft rather than the entire structure. Biplane and triplane denote aircraft with two and three wings, respectively (generally stacked), not including smaller stabilizing wing structures. (Other specialized terms include seaplane and warplane.) To board a plane is to enplane (or emplane), exiting a plane is called deplaning. In woodworking, a plane is a tool for smoothing surfaces, and to plane is to make level or smooth. As a verb, the word also denotes gliding or soaring or, in the case of a boat, skimming over the surface of water. (Hydroplane also serves for this meaning, especially in the context of powerboat racing, though the word also applies as a verb to any action of skimming over water.) The name of the plane tree is unrelated, but planar means â€Å"two-dimensional† or â€Å"pertaining to a plane† and planaria is the designation for a genus of freshwater flatworms. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the General category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:How to Format a UK Business LetterPrecedent vs. PrecedenceParataxis and Hypotaxis

12 Angry Men

12 Angry Men Essay Many movies start with promising premises that end up only partially fulfilled, but 12 Angry Men Essay never disappoints. The rich drama with minimalist sets occurs almost completely within the confines of a jury room. The incredibly strong ensemble cast for the jury includes: Henry Fonda, Lee J. Cobb, Ed Begley, E.G. Marshall, Jack Warden, Jack Klugman, Edward Binns, Joseph Sweeney, Martin Balsam, George Voskovec, John Fiedler and Robert Webber. To further minimize distractions, we never learn most of the jurors names. We know them by their opinions, backgrounds and weaknesses. They have their juror numbers, and that is considered sufficient labeling. As the story opens, a bored judge in a capital murder case is reading his charge to the jury. When he comes to the part about a reasonable doubt, he repeats it with such an emphasis that he seems to be suggesting that any doubt they may have in their minds about the defendants guilt is probably not reasonable. Indeed everyone, including the defendant, seems to think the case is hopeless. The accused, played with big, soulful eyes by John Savoca, never speaks, but his sunken, despondent demeanor says it all. The evidence in the case is clear, and as we find out later, his attorney apparently was pretty inept. Before the jurors start their deliberation, they idle away their time arguing over whether the case was dull or not and over how well the attorneys performed. If you didnt know better, you could assume they were reviewing some movie they had seen. None of them seems to be concerned in the least that the defendants life is at stake. Into this sure and certain world comes a voice of caution, someone who is willing to demand that the jurors put a halt to their headlong rush to judgment. This voice of reason comes from a juror played by Henry Fonda, giving a resolute and perfect performance that should have at least gotten him an Academy Award nomination for best actor, but didnt. Fondas character votes not guilty on the first ballot, not because hes sure the defendant is innocent, but because he wants to get his fellow jurors to stop and reconsider the merits of the case. The other jurors are aghast that he seems to have forgotten the sure and certain facts of the case that prove the defendants guilt. Now these are facts, barks an angry juror played by Lee J. Cobb. You cant refute facts. Everyone brings their differing lifestyles into the jury room. E.G. Marshall plays a prim and proper Wall Street stockbroker. He ticks off the facts in the case as if he were reading closing stock prices from the newspaper. His studious and ever-stern glare cuts down those who disagree with him. And he is the only one who keeps his coat on the entire time-he claims he never sweats, even in the stiflingly hot jury room. His bankers glasses, one of the films few props, turn out to be key to the cases solution. With superciliousness, he bemoans slum dwellers such as the defendant, only to find out that another juror, played by Jack Klugman, grew up in the slums and resents the brokers remarks. Although most jurors are known by the intensity of their convictions, Robert Webber plays someone who works in advertising and views serving on a jury no more seriously than he would concocting a laundry soap jingle. He tries using advertising lingo such as run this idea up the flagpole and see if anybody salutes it. After ridicule and scorn by his fellow jurors, Henry Fondas character suggests a startling compromise. He will abstain from the second ballot, and if they all vote guilty, so will he. But if he has garnered any support for the defendant, then the rest of the jurors have to agree to stay awhile and discuss the case with him. After he wins that round, one by one, the other jurors begin to fall in line behind him, but even if the conclusion is obvious, the way they get there constantly surprises and fascinates. The beauty of Roses script is that we come to know each of the jurors by the end of the deliberations. Most writers would gloss over some of them to concentrate on a few, but Rose gives each a unique personality and background. extroverted marmalade salesman, who made $27,000 last year and has tickets to tonights ball game burning in his pocket. He wants to vote .

RETIREMENT ASSIGNMENT Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

RETIREMENT ASSIGNMENT - Essay Example (Show how you calculated your ending salary and the number that you calculated. Then answer the question about your desired retirement income.) Many financial planners suggest that retirement income (from all sources) should be from 70% to 100% of the salary one had in the last year before they retire. How large will your portfolio have to be (when you retire) to provide your desired standard of living? This problem asks how much money you must accumulate (PVA) by the time you retire or are done working to live for n years, on a retirement income of (PMT) per year if you earn interest rate i. For example, imagine somebody about to retire today, who assumes that they are going to live for n=20 years, wants an income (PMT) = $200,000 per year during their retirement and their annuity earns i = 10% interest: Or, verbally, if this person had a portfolio of $1,702,712 on the day they retired, if they lived for another 20 years, and earned 10%, their annuity would pay $200,000 per year, and there will be nothing left when the person died. (Remember this example is for today: Your number will be much larger because your retirement will take place almost 50 years from now.) Value of Defined Benefit Plan with Single Employer: Suppose you take your first job with an employer that offers a defined benefit retirement plan and a beginning salary of $54,000/yr. Suppose also that you average 5.0% raises every year and that you stay with the same employer for all 48 years of your career. Note that during your 48-year career, you will receive 47 raises, the last of which happens on your last working day, which is also your 70th birthday. (No matter your current age, consider that you start working at age 22, and retire at 70). Assume a salary of $54,000 in the first year and an inflation rate of 2.0%. c. Assuming that the employer’s defined benefit plan pays 1.25% of ending salary per year of employment, what

Poverty and Suggested Solutions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Poverty and Suggested Solutions - Essay Example In fact, â€Å"of the world’s 6 billion people, 2.8 billion—almost half—live on less than $2 a day, and 1.2 billion—a fifth—live on less than $1 a day, with 44 percent living in South Asia† (World Bank). Countries that are economically well-off are not absolutely without cases of poverty too. When the global financial crisis hit these, their poverty levels also grew substantially. However, when compared to the developing and underdeveloped countries, these are still far better. Poverty becomes more glaring and reprehensible if it exists while there are a few that enjoys immense wealth. It is the economic inequalities that actually make people conscious of their impoverished situations. According to the World Bank report â€Å"the average income in the richest 20 countries is 37 times the average in the poorest 20 – a gap that has double in the past 40 years† (2001). The global financial crisis that gravely affected the economies of the developed countries did not level the economic conditions or reduced the gap. While the developed countries did suffer from the crisis, those that are poorer were also badly affected. What happens is that when an economic recession of a global scale occurs, the most developed countries get badly hurt but it is the underdeveloped majority in Africa, Latin America, and most of Asia that get the worst beating. It is necessary to define poverty accurately so that determining its existence and severity in every society is made possible. If it is not defined in the most objective and precise manner, there is the tendency to exaggerate it or to ignore its seriousness. In many underdeveloped countries with less democratic governments, the tendency is to deny its severity in attempts to make themselves unaccountable for the impoverishment of their respective citizens. Timo Airaksinen â€Å"distinguishes relative and absolute poverty, explaining relative poverty as the inability to r each an ‘acceptable’ and ‘average’ standard of living, whereas for absolute poverty, the words used are ‘minimal’ and ‘bare survival’† (Axinn, 1985, p.59). The World Bank, on the other hand, that poverty generally means being in the state of hunger, lacking in shelter and clothing, not having access to healthcare and education. Airaksinen may be right when he stressed that poverty can be relative, considering that this becomes more pronounced when there are a few that are enjoying extreme affluence. While it may be appropriate to describe poverty as it is, analyzing it further for the purpose of achieving an accurate definition may lead to consider relativity. The fact is that people tend to feel the pain of poverty more if they had experienced living a relatively more affluent lifestyle before or if they see that there are others who are. The World Bank report pointed out the three dimensions that are prominent among the imp overished (2001). First is the lack of economic capabilities in the form of income from productive activities and assets or properties. It is because of this poor people do not have the purchasing power needed to acquire the basic necessities such as food, shelter, and clothing, as well as the fundamental health services and education. The second is their apparent powerlessness in the political sphere. Even in countries that claim having a political system modeled after the key democracies in the West,

Euro Disney Essay Example for Free

Euro Disney Essay Despite a long story of success in the past, Euro Disney failed to anticipate demand accurately for their services. The company failed to recognize the frugality and price consciousness of the European customers which had a direct impact on the spending Patterns of the consumers. They assumed Europeans to follow the same pattern as the Americans however this was not the case hence it suffered huge losses. Cultural differences can lower the impact of a certain service and will lead to lower projected revenues. Euro Disney had visitors from all over Europe which spoke different languages, they shared different culture and history compared to American. It was important to integrate it into the theme park before hand. These differences adversely affected the company; alcohol wasn’t served in the park in a country where wine was a norm with food, inability to realize Europeans peak leisure days and serving them breakfast. A better analysis before hand and a president from the local environment initially would have been more familiar with the local environment would have led to increase in revenue. It was very important to be familiar with the mindset of the people while working with those belonging to different culture in order to maintain smooth working environment. The French unlike the Americans were sensitive and touchy people. To foster good will with them one has to incorporate them in one’s decisions and discussions and not just dominate them because this will infuriate them and alienate them and their support and cooperation. The French don’t like bossy attitude coming towards them hence one should be modest in dealing with them. The Tokyo Disney turned out to be a great success, way more than the expectations. The number of visitors was high with large revues and profits. Japanese were adaptable and flexible lot they welcomed American culture in the theme park from food to entertainment whereas the Europeans were reluctant to adopt the American style initially due to which Disney had to face many problems of cultural diversity in Euro Disney. Euro Disney was located at an ideal place as it was close to Paris, Paris being Europe’s largest tourist destination. The problem was not with the location but with other factors such as skimming pricing strategy for the price sensitive Europeans proved to be a failure, recession in the economy, failure to anticipate demand and cultural differences and apart from these operational inefficiencies and mismanagement. Location would not have made these factors better hence it would not have done better if located anywhere outside Paris too. Mickey Mouse is one of the greatest characters of Walt Disney and has a long history of success with the company. It is an icon of American culture; Mickey Mouse has always been one of the attractions at the Disney theme park. Unlike other American theme parks Euro Disney was criticized among the French for being too American and caused a clash, resentment and low turnover from them as they believed keeping French culture aside American culture was being imposed on them. Hence in order to counter the ethnocentric views Disney had to incorporate the French culture into the American Disney image for the liking of the Europeans. In order to make an impact on the Europeans, Disney was required to make a campaign that would have focused on French names and terminology, such as names of the rides and the restaurant menus, the French wanted their culture opposed to the American as it did not   tune in   with their own. Similarly the European Walt Disney studios should focus on French movies and people as a means of entertainment. It should be positioned as a theme park that as a perfect vacation resort and not the American resort in particular. This positioning can be done by engaging tourist guides, bus drivers and travel agents into the marketing campaign and providing them incentives to promote the promotional campaign of the company. Though Disney entered Europe with high hopes and confidence however it had to face losses due to the many mistakes it made in planning and launching the theme park. One such mistake was the price skimming strategy, Disney expected the demand for its park to be inelastic and hence it could have gained high revenues. However, raising admission prices would have added fuel to the situation because the turnover from the French people was already low, their low spending patterns, frugality, and economic recession would have discouraged people from visiting the park as prices were already considered to be very high and would have lead to further losses for Euro Disney. References Jiffy Notes. (n.d.). EURO DISNEY S.C.A. Retrieved May 21, 2010, from JiffyNotes.com: http://www.jiffynotes.com/a_study_guides/book_notes_add/emmc_0001_0001_0/emmc_0001_0001_0_00102.html

Contemporary Social Theory Essay -- essays research papers

Two major approaches to contemporary social theory are the Marxian materialist approach and the structural functionalist approach. The materialist approach was developed from the work of Karl Marx, who believed that the economic order shapes society. The functionalist approach was developed from the work of Comte and Durkheim, stating that is the combination of all of society’s institutions that shapes society. An organic analogy is most often used to explain structural functionalism. The analogy represents society with the human body and social structures and institutions are represented by the body’s organs. For a human being to survive, the body must perform certain functions to solve problems and meet needs. For example, we must circulate blood, remove waste, and biologically reproduce. Survival depends on the individual organs and how they perform together. Each organ does something to keep the system going. In order for society to survive and keep order, individual institutions must effectively perform together. The institutions must perform specific functions to meet problems or satisfy needs. This is achieved by institutions such as the family, economic, educational, and religious orders. It is the make up of the interrelated institutions that form society, as the interrelated organs make up the human body.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The materialist approach argues that humans are unique because we can produce solutions for material wants and needs; that materi...

Different Modes of Thought

Courses are different to turn from the up-to-the-minute to the post modern in the dominion of philosophy and other theoretical dissertations, having the representation of complex pedigree of various and often deviating shadows through diverse restraints and cultural territories. In The Philosophical Discourse of Modernity (Habermas 1987), in a way showed how a pathway moves through a practice of irrationalism from romanticism to existentialism to French postmodernism. French postmodern theory had proliferation on the said movements through the figures of Nietzsche, Heidegger, and Bataille.According to Lyotard, every utterance in the language games is thought of as a move in a game, and â€Å"to speak is to fight [†¦ ] speech acts fall within the domain of a general agonistics. † By linking each statement to one another, there can be an analysis with these terms in a game with specific rules as Lyotard refers speculative discourse as a language game. He gave the name diffe rend in a language game to the calming player. The differend exist when the procedures for what is different to be presented in the contemporary sphere of influence of discourse have no agreement.This can be a suggestion, criticism or aesthetic principle. The stillness of an impossibility of wording an injustice is marked by the differend. The measurement of a unique state of mind which distinguishes its inability to find an object sufficient to the inspirational feeling, the inspirational sensitivity does not come from the object. Powerlessness is a sign by the sublime wherein it becomes the untainted sign when it is understood by the indication of the differend.An event that is historical is an instance of the differend in which a philosopher is tasked to search out for these signs to be given expression by an existing variety of discourse (EGS 2008). There are three remarks about language games. First, legitimating does not carry rules with themselves however they are the object of an agreement, explicit or not, between players. This only means that the players somehow invent the rules. Secondly, there is no game without having such rules. It is a necessity to the games because it serves as a guide to distinguish how players will lose or win to make a fair judgment to both parties.And lastly, utterances are considered as â€Å"moves† in a game. Best example is in basketball. Players in this game do not only play physically but also ethically and morally. Once a player says obscene words against a player or any official during the game, it is somewhat a point against him. This final examination and inspection conveys us to the primary standards fundamental in our technique in one piece is, speaking is fighting, in the good judgment of taking part in, and verbal communication as in talking takes actions to drop within the sphere of influence of a universal anguishes.But does not directly suggests that winning is the primarily concern when playing. For the absolute satisfaction of its creation a particular move is made. The involvement of struggle of language aggravation carried out by trendy speech and by literature is that enormous ecstasy is had in the infinite creation of rotations of expresses, of statements and implications, the development following the advancement of language on the height of parole.But unquestionably even this gratification is dependent on a feeling of accomplishment succeeded at the price of a challenge – at least one adversary, and a redoubtable one: the acknowledged language, or suggestion. (Lyotard 1984) Losing the sight of the second principle which sets as a balance to it and presides over our examination that the discernible social bond is composed of language â€Å"moves† should not happen by the influence of the idea of agonistics of language.The core of everything at hand is at the end of the elucidation of this proposition. In the Modes of Discourse: The local structure of texts, book by Carlota Smith, she mentioned about the Discourse Mode which she broadened an argument for the position that there is an appropriately linguistic stage in discourse stated that the earlier unsuccessful linguistic approaches to discourse are over-reaction made by the pragmatic turn.The observation of linguistic regularities in adjacent sentences is made possible by text passages like the successions of at least two sentences which belong to different discourse approaches that are determined by the types if discourse units such as occasions, states, overviews, concepts which are being introduced in the course and the form of progression from one discourse entity to the next which is called simply as the â€Å"semantic progression†. In nature, it can be temporal or a temporal.Narrative, Description, Report, Information and Argument are the five discourse modes Smith recognizes. These modes speak about regular models of linguistic forms in texts to regular understandings t hereof which claimed to be linguistic units. Having an investigation on questions as how linguistic properties of passages can shed light on features made by Smith aside from making an argument for the existence of linguistic discourse modes and elucidating the characteristics of their features which are shared by all discourse modes.Expressions of subjectivity in the sense of point of views and the effects of â€Å"surface presentation† in the sense of commentary and focus-background modulations in discourse are of these features. As what had Lyotard stated, in relation to Smith’s ideology, linguistics is not just mere verbal or nonverbal concepts. It also deals with various considerations and factors. These can be culture, environment, traditions and customs, religion and others.Two people of different races, geographical locations can have a vague interpretation to a certain subject or topic or just to a plain word. Diversity is a major concern but can be arranged o r managed if appropriateness is dealt with. As a language game, rationalism comes with its own rules of engagement—objectivity, certainty, universality, instrumentality and predictability. However, the game is played within various â€Å"forms of life† (Lebensformen) and the latter provide the background and context against and in which the game plays out its sense and reference (Schrag, 1997, p.32).Discourse as a concept is introduced as a theoretical refinement of the concept of paradigm and applied to the sets of knowledge claims of the natural and social sciences. Horizontal differentiation defines particular modes of sociological discourse and vertical differentiation from everyday discourses defines general modes of scientific discourse. Science is the best medium for the concerns on diversity. Scientific names and such others are universally accepted that is why there would never be a problem on confusion, misconceptions and misunderstanding.It is another langua ge that unifies other language speakers used for scholarly studies and to communicate about indefinite species. Lyotard is claiming that the conventional idealistic measures and evaluation of knowledge and genuineness within the restraints are but interior legends, which efforts to disagree with the societal foundation of omnipotence or all-knowing. The postmodern point of view like an amount of other scholarly practices and traditions, announces that all human comprehension and understanding is integrated through a shared cultural leveling, and is a social edifice.

1% of Local Police Departments

Reflections from the One-Percent of Local Police Departments with Mandatory Four-Year Degree Requirements For New Hires: Are They Diamonds in the Rough? Diana Bruns Bacone College ***Contact information Diana Bruns, Ph. D. Department Chairperson and Professor, Criminal Justice Studies Bacone College 2299 Old Bacone Road Muskogee, OK 74403 [email  protected] edu cell: 918-781-7295 office: 918-781-7295 **Diana Bruns is the Department Chairperson and Professor of Criminal Justice Studies at Bacone College in Muskogee, OK.Reflections from the One-Percent of Local Police Departments with Mandatory Four-Year Degree Requirements For New Hires: Are They Diamonds in the Rough? Abstract Countless studies have permeated the literature regarding the utility of a bachelor’s degree for police officers. Local law enforcement agencies with mandatory four-year degree requirements serve as the population for this study relative to the current status of college degreed officers, as well as pop ulation demographics and commonalities among such departments.The utility of college degree requirements, choice of academic discipline and why four-year degree requirements nationwide are merely a preference, not a standard mandatory hiring requirement is discussed. Current minimum educational requirements for local and state police agencies and implications for the future of the college-degreed officers are explored. Hiring college-educated candidates in the law enforcement field does not guarantee they will be good officers.Being a police officer is hard and to be successful, you have to want to be a police officer. Individuals who receive the required degree in law enforcement have demonstrated their desire. Desire is something very hard to evaluate, but such an important trait. If all other qualities are equal—the college graduate with a four-year degree in criminal justice or related field should be hired as police officers before one who doesn’t have the degree. Police Chief from department with mandatory degree requirement Introduction and Background The relevance of a college degree for police officers has been debated for decades. Numerous studies have been conducted regarding the importance of the degreed officer, while others have described how a college degree is not an essential or important ingredient for success among police officers. That precise debate—the worth of the bachelor’s degree for police officers is not the focus of this endeavor.The focus here is central to three vital panels’ recommendations from 1967-1974 proclaiming that police officers obtain baccalaureate degree—the President’s Commission on Law Enforcement and the Administration of Justice, the National Advisory Commission on Criminal Justice Standards and Goals, and the American Bar Association Project on Standards for Criminal Justice—and why so few local and state police departments have followed suit in requiring tha t police officers hold baccalaureate degrees, as less than 1% of such departments require a four-year degree (Hickman and Reeves, 2006).It is evident that leaders in law enforcement are hesitant to embrace the educational movement. Roberg and Bonn (2004) reiterated the nearly nonexistent numbers of police departments requiring degrees. Although leaders in law enforcement continue to hesitate the implementation of educational requirements (Carlan, 2007; Roberg and Bonn, 2004; Breci, 1997;Remington, 1990), recruitment for college graduates continues to increase. Carlan (2007) examined the worth of the criminal justice degree as valued by police officers and found that In this study, police officers (n=299) with varying levels of experience and riminal justice education revealed positive attitudes concerning the degree’s value with regard to conceptual development for employment purposes. The positive assertions in this study reflect well on the ability of criminal justice progr ams to prepare its clientele for meaningful employment challenges (p. 616). Johnston, Cheurprakobkit, and McKenzie (2002) revealed that law enforcement administrators stressed that the role of education should place importance in aiding police officers with knowledge of the legal aspects of policing as well as report writing, ethics, and procedures.The President’s Commission (1967) reported that without higher educational requirements, quality in police services could not be achieved or attained. However, over forty years later, in 2009, although most police agencies do report that they prefer a college-degreed officer, the majority of police agencies (local, state and special jurisdiction) do not require anything more than a high school diploma or equivalent. Upon reviewing 36 departments that require a four-year degree, this exploratory analysis attempts to reveal and explore the reasoning behind the small number of police departments actually requiring the degree.Results o f this analysis will describe the departments with four-year mandatory degree requirements and characteristics of such departments will include opinions of police chiefs regarding why a college degree is important to police. Qualitative explanations will yield information regarding how explemplary practices of a few departments should serve as role models and guides for departments across the nation in the one-hundred year quest to professionalize the policing field. As the literature suggests, police administrators do prefer police officers to hold a baccalaureate degree, but do not require it.Verrill (2007) called for the need to determine why the select one-percent of local police departments who require the degree actually do so. This study attempts to answer that question. As stated previously, debates pertaining to the usefulness and value of a college degree for police officers have been commonplace in criminal justice literature for decades. However, at the outset, it is unc lear how many police departments actually require a four-year degree and the location of such departments. This lack of clarity is further exemplified by ncertainty as to how many police officers and police agencies there actually are the in U. S. , leads to difficulty in counting police agencies (Maguire, Snipes, Uchida, and Townsend, 1998). Whatever the case, we can be assured that few police agencies (non-federal) actually require a bachelor’s degree. Is the Type of Degree Important? Verrill (2007) described the sparse amount of literature concerning the advantage or worth of a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice and whether criminal justice employers give preferentiality to vocational over theoretical degrees or vice versa.Verrill’s study reviewed entry-level educational requirements for criminal justice agencies in Florida, where only two local police departments out of N=261 sampled required a bachelor’s degree. Realistically, Verrill’s sam ple is indicative of local police departments nationwide, as less than one-percent require a bachelor’s degree as a prerequisite for employment. It is unclear at this point, from the literature, whether those one-percent of police departments who require four-year degrees specify which discipline they prefer.This analysis reveals striking information regarding the few police departments that require the degree and their preferences regarding the discipline as well as if they prefer that police candidates have degrees pertaining to either vocational or theoretical orientations. Bostrom (2005) addressed differences in levels of performance and work habits among officers who had obtained Bachelor of Arts degrees and Bachelor of Science degrees, finding that officers with Bachelor of Arts degrees have better work habits (measured by sick time usage, traffic collisions, discipline) than officers with a Bachelor of Science degree.Although results were detailed with caution, as this was an exploratory study at one large police department, Bostrom called for future research in this area. Schafer and Castellano (2005) attempted to extricate the relationships that subsist among work experience, educational background and attitudes toward criminal justice education, once again finding, â€Å"the quality of police service will not significantly improve until higher educational requirements are established for its personnel† (p. 300). Research Questions 1. What is currently known about educational requirements for local and state police departments/agencies? 2.How many police departments (local) have a four-year degree requirement and where are those departments? Who makes up the one-percent of police departments that the literature refers to as requiring four-year degrees? What is the range in size of police departments that have the four-year degree requirement? Are they large departments or small departments? 3. How many departments that have the four-year degree requirement will waive the requirement, and under what conditions can the educational requirement be waived? 4. What are the education levels of chiefs of police in departments that have a four-year degree requirement? . What are the mean starting salaries for the departments that require a four-year degree? Are the starting salaries for police officers in police departments with four-year degree requirements higher than salaries for police officers in departments without four-year degree requirements? 6. Do police chiefs in departments with four-year degree requirements prefer that officers have a degree in criminal justice? 7. Do police chiefs in departments with four-year degree requirements have a preference of vocational (hands-on) orientation rather than an academic (theoretical) orientation? . Have applicant pools increased, decreased or stayed the same since their four-year degree requirement was mandated? 9. Do the police chiefs believe the degree requirement will c hange in time, or will it remain a mandate, with no exceptions? 10. Regarding police departments with the four-year degree requirement, why does their respective department require a four-year degree? 11. Regarding police departments with the four-year degree requirement, why do police chiefs believe so few departments across the nation actually require the degree?Current Knowledge About Educational Requirements for US Police Departments According to the U. S. Department of Justice (2004), there are 12,766 local police departments with 3,067 sheriff’s offices, 49 primary state law enforcement agencies, 1,481 special jurisdiction agencies, and 513 ‘other’ agencies totally 17,876 law enforcement agencies. As of 2003, in a sample of 3000 police departments, 98% of local police departments had an educational requirement for new recruits; 18% had ‘some type’ of college requirement; ine percent required a two-year degree and less than one-percent required a four-year degree (Hickman and Reaves, 2006). Another source, The International Association for Chiefs of Police (2008) announced that 16% of state police agencies require a two-year degree, while four-percent require a four-year degree; 13% of county police agencies require a two-year degree and an unknown percentage of county police agencies require a four-year degree. Nine percent of local police departments require a two-year degree and two-percent require a four-year degree.However, it was unclear the name and location of the departments that required a two or a four-year degree. Furthermore, it is unclear as to where that two-percent was derived. Overall, scarce information is available regarding which departments require a two or a four-year degree. By searching state police agency and state highway patrol websites, it is evident that only three state police departments require officers to hold four-year degrees—Illinois State Police, New Jersey State Police, and Nort h Dakota Highway Patrol. All three agencies, however, will waive educational requirements.Regarding the New Jersey State Police’s minimum qualifications, An applicant must have (1) a bachelor’s degree, signifying completion of the undergraduate curriculum and graduation from an accredited college or university or, (2) alternatively, an associate’s degree or have complete 60 college credits from an accredited college or university, plus at least two years of satisfactory employment, or (3) alternately, have completed 30 college credits from an accredited college or university, plus at least two years of active duty military service with an honorable discharge (http://www. jsp. org/recruit/qual. html). The Illinois State Police has the following minimum educational requirement: Option 1). An Associate of Arts Degree or equivalent coursework and must meet one of the following two job experience requirements: Three consecutive years of continuous, full-time service as a police officer, with the same police agency or three consecutive years of active military duty. Option 2). An Associate Degree of Science or equivalent coursework and meet one of the following two job experience requirements: three onsecutive years of continuous, full-time service, as a police officer, with the same agency or three consecutive years of active military duty. Option 3). An Associate of Applied Science Degree, only if the degree is in Law Enforcement/Criminal Justice and meet one of the following two job experience requirements: Three consecutive years of continuous, full-time service as a police officer, with the same agency, or three consecutive years of active military duty. Option 4). A Bachelor’s Degree (https://www. illinoisstatetrooper. om/requiremnents. html). Lastly, North Dakota Highway Patrol’s minimum educational requirements are: An Associate degree with two years of work-related experience or a Bachelor’s degree (http://nd. gov/n dhp/employment/qualifications. html). Upon review of each state police or state highway patrol website, the following requirements by state were revealed: presently, ten states require an Associate’s Degree or 60 hours of college credit (PA, TX, KY, MN, MO, OK, DE, CN, WI, LA). The remaining states require a high school diploma or equivalent.However, one state– Nevada, stipulates no educational requirement. Out of the 100 largest cities in the United States, only four police departments require a four-year degree (Jacksonville, FL, Arlington, TX. , St. Paul, MN, and Tulsa, OK). Upon looking at the 100 largest police departments in the United States by number of sworn officers (list provided by the Police Executive Research Forum), only 3 of the largest police departments require a four-year degree (New Jersey State Police, Illinois State Police, and Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office).After reviewing each of the 100 largest cities websites, it was determined that 67% of such departments require a police officers to have a high school diploma or equivalent; 6% require a high school diploma plus 12 hours college credit; 4% require between 30-40 hours of college credit, 19% require an Associate’s degree or 60 hours of college credit, with 4% requiring a four-year degree.Again after searching agency websites regarding career opportunities, the percentages were similar upon reviewing the largest 100 departments by number of sworn officers: 68% required a high school diploma or equivalent; 4% required a high school diploma or equivalent plus 12 hours of college credit; 4% required between 30-54 hours of college credits; 21% required an Associate’s degree of 60 hours of college credit, and 3% of the 100 largest police departments (by number of sworn officers) currently require a four-year degree.Once again, even the few that require the degree; the majority will waive the requirement, with certain stipulation—which will be discuss ed. To estimate whether or not the one-percent of police departments with degree requirements were actually large or small departments necessitated reviewing the LEMAS report (2003), concluding that Seventy-four percent (74%) of all local police departments served fewer than 10,000 residents, these agencies employed just 14% of all offices. About half of all officers served a jurisdiction with 100,000 or more residents.While departments serving the largest cities had thousands of officers on average, those serving fewer than 2,500 residents have an average of just four full-time employees, including three sworn officers. The Arguments: Pros and Cons of the College-Educated Police Officer The idea surrounding the purpose of college-educated officers has stemmed from two sources: the alleged importance of professionalism for the police force and to change officer attitudes (Shernock, 1992). Friedmann (2006) made an excellent point,When police officers try to do their job today without a degree, their already difficult task is made more difficult. However, chiefs who mandate the degree requirement should be aware that the transition period—where the police department does not already have a clear majority of officers with degrees—could be difficult. Police officers sometimes resist higher education requirements. Despite this resistance, police officers need higher education for the good of the profession† (p. 23). Chief of Police Hawkins (2006) reiterated his department’s four-year requirement in Burnsville, MN. ,Burnsville’s four-year degree requirement helps recruit big-picture thinkers who are creative, culturally aware, and technically sound in constitutional law, and who look for the best solution to the multitudes of challenges they encounter. An officer’s well-rounded background enhances his or her ability and desire to partner with community members, use the vast resources both the residents and business owners pos sess, and make them part of the problem-solving process. The synergy created between the community and the officers is the basis foundation of Burnsville’s community policing efforts. Friedman, 2006, p. 28). As the debate over the need for an educated police officers has demonstrated contradictory evidence concerning college educated police officers—meaning that although many studies are supportive that officers need a college education, there is also conflicting evidence. Baro and Burlingame (1999) disputed recommendations that officers need a baccalaureate degree to increase levels of police professionalism, stating that officers need no more than a high school diploma or equivalency.Sherman and McLeod (1979) speculated that higher education for officers may be irrelevant because the education officers receive in higher educational institutions is quite similar to training officers receive in police academies. Critics of higher educations believe the â€Å"college-e ducated officers are more likely to become frustrated with their work, with restrictions imposed by supervisors, and with limited opportunities for advancement† (Worden, 1990, p. 567). Hudzick (1978) found that officers with an education place less value on obedience to supervisors and are less satisfied with their careers.Other are concerned that â€Å"college-educated officers will quickly tire of the irregular hours, constant pressures, and relative low pay of policing† (Varricchio, 1988, p. 11). Whetstone (2000) acknowledged that, â€Å"hiring candidates with improved credentials also invites eventual problems such as greater job dissatisfaction and personnel turnover† (p. 247). Kakar (1998) further demonstrated that a college education might decrease officer’s quality of service because police work does not offer opportunities to stimulate the college-educated mind.Furthermore, because police performance measures differ in studies, no real consensus e xists on exactly how police performance should be defined and measured. Carter and Sapp (1990) indicated that regardless of degree requirements, 23% of police officers had obtained a four-year degree and 65% of police officers had at least one year of college. Peterson (2001) gave somewhat higher estimates, in that 30% of police officers sampled from ten medium-sized departments in the Midwest had four-year degrees.Mayo (2006) estimates between 25-30% of police officers have a four-year degree, which realistically nearly mirrors the percentage of U. S. population over age 25 who have obtained a bachelor’s degree. According to the US Census Bureau (2005) 28% of the US population over the age of 25 has obtained a bachelor’s degree, which is an all-time high. Common sense dictates that those percentages of police officers with four-year degrees are representative of the education levels of the communities they serve, if we utilize such figures and that line of reasoning.H owever, the small number of departments requiring degrees necessitates attention to raise awareness to the fact that less than 100 police departments, including special jurisdiction police, state police, county and local police departments mandate degrees, and whether this will change in the future. Little information exists regarding the 1% of police departments that require the four-year degree. Mayo (2006) revealed several case studies of departments with four-year degrees regarding the question of the degree and its importance to the sites’ organizational success in the communities they serve.One of the departments that was highlighted, the Dover Police Department in N. J. , which is now the Toms River Police Department, has changed its language to relax its mandatory four-year requirement, the current ordinance: requires candidates to possess a bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university or, the candidate must possess a minimum of 64 college credits combined with two (2) full years of military experience or full time work experience (http://www. rpolice. org/Recruitment. html). Other than a list of departments that require four-year degrees recently made available on-line by the Police Association for College Education, no other list is available to reveal the one-percent of police agencies that require the four-year degree. Unfortunately, many of the departments listed on that site that have a four-year degree requirement no longer have the requirement, but have relaxed it or waived it all together.After contacting all of the departments by email or phone, the following departments on PACE’s list no longer require a four-year degree: Vallejo, CA. ; Boulder, CO. ; Peach Tree, GA. ; Holden, MA. ; St. Cloud, MN. ; Eagan City, MN. ; Borough of Gettysburg, PA. ; Edinboro, PA. ; Appleton, WI. ; Flint, MI. ; Milford, MI. ; Montvale, NJ. ; University Park, TX; Whitefish Bay, WI; and Upper Moreland, NJ. The Chief of Police, Tho mas Nestle, III. , of Upper Moreland, NJ, responded via email that Upper Moreland only requires 60 hours of college credit.Nestel (2009) offered his opinion, via email, as to why the degree requirements was relaxed at his department, The applicant pool that is suited for this position frequently does not possess the educational pedigree you describe (a four-year degree). Law enforcement tends to draw military veterans and sons/daughters of existing officers. Neither group has a high rate of college graduates. Recruiting on college campuses has proven to be very unsuccessful. Policing doesn’t seem to be an appealing direction for the college graduate.In recent years, other departments (Memphis, TN, Plano, TX, Portland, OR) once known to have had a four-year degree requirement, further made national headlines regarding the choice to relax their respective educational requirement. Interestingly, many other police departments were found that were not included in the Police Associ ation for College Education’s (PACE) list regarding police departments that require four-year degrees as of 2006. A massive Internet search was undertaken to locate local police departments that currently require a four-year degree for new patrol officers.Additionally, numerous contacts via telephone to police chiefs and recruits were attempted to uncover additional police departments with four-year degree requirements. However, most of those attempts were unsuccessful for little knowledge exists as to whom the police departments requiring four-year degrees actually were in the U. S. Therefore, it was necessary to rely on departmental websites in attempts to discover who indeed mandated the baccalaureate degree requirement. Problematically, many departmental websites lacked clarity regarding educational requirements.Therefore, if relevant information could not be obtained via websites, many telephone contacts to police departments led to the discovery of 60 local police depar tments, including local police departments and county sheriff offices that require a four-year degree for police officers. However, there are several special jurisdiction police agencies that also require officers to hold a baccalaureate degree and will not waive educational requirements, including the Missouri Department of Conservation (law enforcement) and the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.However, special jurisdiction police agency degree requirements are not the focus of this analysis. Sixty police agencies (local and county) were unearthed to indeed have the requirement–Illinois has the greatest number of police departments requiring a four-year degree, with eleven; New Jersey has seven; Ohio has eight; Pennsylvania has six; Michigan has 5; Texas has four; Wisconsin has 4; Colorado has 3; South Carolina has 2; Florida has 2; Minnesota has 2; Oregon, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, and Missouri each have one local police department that has a four-year degr ee requirement.Special jurisdiction police agencies aside, caution however, that of those 60 police departments, only 37 will not waive or relax their educational requirements for any exception. Therefore, there are 37 local police departments that will not waive their educational requirements on any grounds. Table 1 contains the 37 local departments that will not waive educational requirements. Population size, gathered from Sperling’s Best Places (www. bestplaces. net) follow to demonstrate the size of each city in which the respective department is located.Regarding county police departments, population size was not included. Table 1 Note: N=37. This may not be the complete list. However, no other such list is available. Simple computations reveal the Mean for the population size of local police departments with mandatory degree requirements is (X=61,911), with the Median (MD=31,891). Due to the reality that there are so few local police departments mandating degrees, it i s relevant to include examples of specific educational requirements for such departments regarding their policy regarding mandatory four-year degree education requirements in Table 2.Local Police Departments Requiring Four-Year Degrees, No Exceptions Police DepartmentLocationPopulation Size Arvada Police DepartmentCO104,838 Arlington Police DepartmentTX367,197 Bethel Park Police Department PA 31,891 Bloomfield Township Police Department MI 65,796 Canfield Police Department OH 7,061 Centerville Police Department OH 23,046 Cleveland Heights Police Department OH 47,097Deer Park Police Department TX 29,748 Burnsville Police Department MN 59,321 Eatontown Police Department NJ 14,022 Elgin Police Department IL 98,846 Gaston County Police Department NC Flint Township Police Department MI 32,753 Green Tree Borough Police Department PA 4,396 Lakewood Police DepartmentCO140,024 Leonia Police DepartmentNJ 8,799 Mahwah Police DepartmentNJ 24,560 Middleburg Heights Police DepartmentOH 15,237 Mt. Lebanon Police DepartmentPA 5,481 Multnomah County Sheriff’s DepartmentORNaperville Police DepartmentIL140,633 Norton Shores Police DepartmentMI 23,429 Novi Police DepartmentMI 52,621 Owasso Police DepartmentMI 15,388 Palatine Police DepartmentIL 66,596 Platteville Police DepartmentWI 9,748 Pueblo Police DepartmentCO103,730 Peters Township Police DepartmentPA 4,683 Richmond Heights Police DepartmentMO 9,228 Schaumburg Police DepartmentIL 73,890 Smithfield Police DepartmentRI 21,863 South Park Township Police DepartmentPA 14,647 Strongsville Police DepartmentOH 43,347 Sugar Land Police DepartmentTX 79,943 Tulsa Police DepartmentOK385,486 Wheaton Police Department IL 54,611Wilmette Police Department IL 26,737 Table 2 Examples of Educational Specification Per Department That Have Mandatory Four-year Degree Requirements PoliceEducational Requirement Specification Department Arvada PDâ€Å"Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university (final semester seniors are eligible). This requirement will not be waived for any reason† (http://arvadapd. org/join-our-team/requirements/. html). Arlington PDâ€Å"Possess a Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university. Education is not waived for prior military service or prior experience† http://www. rlingtonpd. org/index. asp? nextpg=recruiting/require. asp). Centerville PDâ€Å"Bachelor’s Degree Required† (http://ci. centerville. oh. us/index. php? option=com). Deer Park PDâ€Å"Bachelor’s degree by hire date† (http://www. ci. deer-park. tx. us/department/index. php? fDD=15-0 Eatontown PDâ€Å"Effective September 1, 2008, applicant must have a bachelor’s degree, signifying completion of the undergraduate curriculum and graduation from an accredited college or university† (http://www. nj. com/police/careers. html).Lakewood PDâ€Å"Bachelor’s degree in any discipline—no exceptions† (http://www. ci. lakewo od. co. us/index. cfmp). Tulsa PDâ€Å"Applicants must have completed a Bachelor’s degree with a C+ average or better at an accredited college. No military hours or credits are acceptable unless they are received from or converted through an accredited college† (http:/www. tulsapd. ord/recruiting/requirements. htm Note. This is not an exhaustive list. Examples of Specific Educational Requirements Per Departments Regarding Mandatory Four-Year Degree Education Requirement, With Waiver ExceptionsAs stated previously, only 37 local police departments require a four-year degree with no exceptions allowed. However, 23 other local police departments require a four-year degree, but will waive the requirements with certain exceptions, as do the Illinois State Police and the New Jersey State Police. Therefore, those 23 departments with similar wording or language embedded in their respective specific job requirements or career opportunities containing ‘require a four-year degree, but will relax requirements,’ will be included in departments that require four-year degrees.The Toms River Police Department provides a good example of ‘waiver exceptions,’ The current ordinance requires candidates to possess a bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university or the candidate must possess a minimum of 64 college credits combined with two (2) full years of military experience or full-time regular police experience† (http://www. trpolice. org/Recruitment. html). Other specific examples of police department requirements with waivers include: Charleston Police Department, Bachelor’s degree and above or Associate degree with four years of prior law enforcement experience or military experience† (http:www. charlestoncity. info/dept/content. aspx? nid=817&cid=9931). Coral Springs Police Department’s requirements are similar, â€Å"Applicant must possess: A Bachelor’s degree from an accredited c ollege or (4) years law enforcement experience and at least 60 credits from an accredited college, or (4) years military experience and at least 60 credits from an accredited college† (http://www. theblueline. com/feature/Flcoralsprings. html). Other examples include: 1.Highland Park Police Department â€Å"Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university—consideration may be given for applicants who possess at least 60 credit hours† (http://www. hptxorg/index. aspx? page=233). 2. Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office â€Å"Must possess a Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or possess an accredited Associate’s degree or equivalent (60 semester hours/90 quarter hours) with four (4) years prior active military or law enforcement experience or possess 90 semester/135 quarter hours with two (2) years prior active military or law enforcement experience† http:www. coj. net/Departments/Sheriffs+Office/About+ the+JSO/default. htm). 3. Livonia Police Department â€Å"Have been awarded an Associate Degree in Law Enforcement or Public Administration or a Bachelor Degree in any non-Criminal Justice discipline† (http://www. ci. livonia. mi. us/default. asp? area2=departments%2Fcivil+service) 4. Osh Kosh Police Department â€Å"Associate degree—In Criminal Justice/Police Science; Bachelor degree—in any field† (https://wilenet. org/html/employment/showopportunities. jsp). 5. Tinley Park Police Department All applicants must have completed 2 years satisfactory experience as a certified sworn law enforcement officer in the state of Illinois or posses an Associates Degree with at least a C average (or its equivalent) with an emphasis in criminal justice, or possess 60 college credit hours with at least a C average (or its equivalent) with an emphasis in criminal justice, or possess a Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science degree from a four year college or university† (http:www. tinleyparkpolice. org/police. html).Haddon Township Police department is another that was included in the list of police departments that require a four-year degree, however, their exception has somewhat different specifications: â€Å"Applicants must make a pre-employment agreement to achieve a Baccalaureate Degree within eight years from the time of employment. † (http://www. haddontwppolice. com/). Table 3 includes Police Departments that require four-year degrees, with exceptions or waiver conditions. Table 3 Police Departments that Have Four-Year Degree Requirements, With ExceptionsPoliceLocation Departments Bath Police Department OH Bainbridge Township Police Department OH Charleston Police Department SC Cherry Hill Police Department NJ Coral Springs Police Department FL Haddon Township Police Department NJ Highland Park Police Department TX Hinsdale Police Department IL Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office FL Langlade County Sheriff’s Department WI Livonia Poli ce Department MI Kettering Police Department OH Montgomery Township Police Department NJ Osh Kosh Police Department WIPlano Police Department TX Richland County Sheriff’s Office SC River Forest Police Department IL Shaler Police Department PA St. Paul Police Department MN Tinley Park Police Department IL Toms River Police Department NJ (Formerly Dover PD) Vernon Hills Police Department IL Willowbrook Police Department IL Note. N=23. Methodology Regarding the 1% of local police departments that require a four-year degree at the time of hire, it was noted previously that little information exists about the location of such departments.Intensive Internet searches, email and telephone contacts with multitudes of police recruiters and chiefs yielded 60 departments with four-year degree requirements, although only 37 of such departments had mandatory educational requirements resulting in no educational waivers. As it was unclear which department had mandatory requirements at the ou tset, 45 questionnaires were mailed to police chiefs at departments, which were believed to have mandatory requirements.Of those 45 questionnaires mailed, 40 were completed and returned–which was an excellent overall response rate of nearly 89%. Four of those surveys revealed that the departments surveyed did not require the four-year degree requirement; therefore, the results were not utilized. Thirty-six (36) returned questionnaires remained, revealing both important and relevant information about departments with mandatory requirements and were the subjects for this study. Thirty-seven (37) departments overall were found with mandatory requirements.Items on the questionnaires pertained to a wide range of subjects including the year in which such departments implemented their degree requirement; number of sworn officers; the chief’s education level; mean starting salaries for police officers; whether or not police chiefs had a preference in degree discipline; whether the chiefs preferred their officers had degrees that were vocational or theoretical in nature; whether chiefs preferred bachelor or arts degrees over bachelor of science degree; if officers who were hired before the degree requirement was established were required to complete respective degrees; whether they believed the degree requirement would be altered in the future; if applicant pool had increased, decreased or remained the same since the establishment of the degree requirement; the requirement’s impact on minority recruiting, and whether police chiefs believed officers with a college degree perform better than officers without a college degree.Additionally, two questions qualitatively regarding why police chiefs believed their respective departments had the mandatory requirement and why police chiefs believe only 1% of other departments have followed suit in mandating the requirement. Although glaring limitations to this analysis stem from the fact the little informati on exists regarding the reality of those one-percent of police departments that mandate a four-year degree, this is an exploratory step enabling further exploration into this important issue. Ultimately, the future professionalism of the policing field does hinge on raising degree requirements across police departments in America. Although only 36 police chiefs were surveyed, their information speaks volumes as to the need for other departments to follow their lead.As one chief eloquently stated: It is evident that society has become more complex. Problem solving skills along with communication skills are even more important today for police officers. A college education gives a foundation and more importantly legitimizes police work as a profession The instrument utilized has not proven reliable. However, this began a process of raising issues regarding the importance and the future of the college-degreed officer. At the outset, many officers are obtaining four-year degrees regardl ess of whether the degree is required or not. Results Information regarding the analysis of data is organized according to the research questions.For each question, the results are followed by an explanation and discussion of the findings. Only descriptive statistics were utilized, as there was no need for making inferences in this analysis. Eleven research questions were addressed in attempts to determine how departments that require four-year degrees are different from departments that have the requirement, and will waive it, or do not have such requirements. Descriptive data from the surveys revealed that the first department implemented their mandatory degree requirement in 1963. One chief responded, Our degree requirement was implemented in 1990. We changed the entry-level minimum educational requirement from a high chool diploma to a bachelor’s degree over the course of seven years. Research indicates police agencies should require a four-year degree. Table 4 describes the year departments implemented their mandatory degree requirement, with a range from 1963-2008. Table 4 Frequencies and Percentages for the Year Degree Requirements were Implemented Year Degree Requirement Implemented f% 1963 12. 8 1969 38. 3 1975 25. 6 1976 12. 8 1981 12. 8 1984 12. 8 1986 38. 3 1987 12. 8 1990 4 11. 1 1991 12. 8 1992 1 2. 8 1993 12. 8 994 12. 8 1995 12. 8 1996 12. 8 1997 25. 6 1998 38. 3 2000 12. 8 2005 12. 8 2006 1 2. 8 2008 12. 8 Note. N=36 It was apparent from the literature that only three of the largest police departments (by sworn officer) required a four-year degree. Tulsa Police Department is the largest department in this study, with 844 sworn officers. However, Tulsa is not the norm regarding departments with degree requirements and number of sworn officers, as results will show that most police departments with degree requirements have less than 100 sworn officers.However, of the 36 respondents in this particular study, the range of number of sworn of ficers was 15 at the smallest department to 844 sworn officers at the largest department included. The mean number of sworn officers was 127. 20 (SD=171. 46, MD=70). Table 5 illustrates the frequencies and percentages of sworn officers in departments with mandatory degree requirements, demonstrating that most of the departments with the requirement have fewer than 100 sworn officers; 16 departments have fewer than 50 sworn officers. Table 5 Frequencies and Percentages of Number of Sworn Officers in Departments with Mandatory Degree Requirements Number of Sworn Officers f % 1512. 8 2025. 6 2112. 8 212. 8 2512. 8 2712. 8 2912. 8 3112. 8 3412. 8 3725. 6 4012. 8 4312. 8 4612. 8 4812. 8 5412. 8 7025. 6 7212. 8 7412. 8 7512. 8 9812. 8 10312. 8 11225. 6 13712. 8 16012. 8 16512. 8 18912. 8 20012. 8 20512. 8 28212. 8 34012. 8 61512. 8 84412. 8 Note. N=36. Regarding the police chief’s level of education, Table 6 contains the frequencies and percentages associated with levels of educati on broken down into five categories: Associate’s Degree, Bachelor’s Degree; One Master’s Degree; Multiple (2) Master’s Degree’s, and Doctorate Degree. One of the departments where the chief had an Associates degree, the mandatory requirement was implemented in 1981.Furthermore, in all 36 departments surveyed, no officer was on the force without a degree before the educational mandate has implemented was required to obtain a four-year degree. In essence, the grandfather clause was utilized. The same was true with the chief’s who did not meet the degree requirement, as they were not required to meet new degree requirements. Table 6 Police Chief’s Level of Education in Departments with Mandatory Four-Year Degree Requirements Degree Type Earnedf% Associate’s Degree25. 6 Bachelor’s Degree 10 27. 8 One Master’s Degree 22 61. 1 Two Master’s Degrees12. 8 Doctorate Degree12. 8 Note.N=36 Regarding the mean starting s alaries for the departments that require a four-year degree, the mean starting salaries for police officers in police departments with four-year degree requirements are higher than salaries for police officers in departments without four-year degree requirements. City data was additionally gathered (www. bestplaces. net) regarding median household income for the 37 original locations of departments with mandatory degree requirements. The median household income for city residents pertaining to this sample was $61,330. According to the U. S. Census Bureau (2008) the median household income reached $50,233 in 2007.Therefore, it was likely that mean starting salaries for police officers in these locations would also be higher. According to one police chief surveyed: It’s all about tradition, size of city and location. The Sourcebook of Criminal Justice Statistics On-line (2006) states that the mean starting salary for police officers ranging from populations from 10,000 to over 1,000,000 was $38,569. As shown in Table 7, the mean starting salaries for police officers in police departments with mandatory four-year degree requirements was quite higher. A striking example of this is illustrated in one chief’s words, Thirty-nine percent of our residents over the age of 25 have an advanced collegiate degree.Our population is 27,000. Our residents are university professors, attorneys, medical doctors, CEO’s. Our village is considered upper class economically and home values are quite high. Many well-known people live here. Our police officers are comfortable inter-acting in our residents’ homes, even on the most sensitive matters. We don’t feel inferior. We belong here. Our residents value us. The four-year degree requirement helps us significantly in recruiting. We provide an average of more than 100 hours of training annually to our officers. Our ‘brand’ is that we are the ‘education and training’ departmen t. This has been very effective for us. Table 7Means and Other Statistics Concerning Salaries for Police Officers in Departments With Mandatory Four-Year Degree Requirements Starting Salary Mean $47,222 Median $46,786 Mode $40,000 SD $6,024 Minimum $34,901 Maximum $58,931 Note. N=36. Only two of the departments surveyed required that officer possess a four-year degree in Criminal Justice or Law Enforcement. It is common that police departments requiring Associate’s degrees are specifically looking for their police candidates to have an Associate’s degree in Criminal Justice or a closely related field. However, upon surveying police chiefs in departments with mandatory four-year degree requirements, only seven or 19. 4% preferred criminal justice or closely related degrees. Seventy-five ercent (75%) of police chiefs in this study believed that a four-year degree in any discipline was acceptable. Two police chiefs in this sample were uncertain as to whether they preferre d a criminal justice degree to a degree in any other discipline. When asked whether the police chiefs preferred a practical/vocational degree or a degree that was theoretical/academic in nature, or if they had no preference, the majority (63. 9%) of chiefs had no preference–either orientation was acceptable, stating that was precisely the four-year degree in itself that mattered. Table 8 illustrates the frequencies and percentages of practical versus theoretical orientations. Table 8Frequencies and Percentages of Degree Orientation Preference: Practical v. Theoretical Degree Orientation Preferencef% Prefer practical/vocational orientation822. 2 Prefer theoretical/academic orientation411. 1 No preference, either acceptable 2363. 9 Uncertain 1 2. 8 Note. N=36. The results of this study lend little support either way to Bostrom’s (2005) finding. Although several police chiefs could break down the percentage of their officers who had a Bachelor of Arts degree or Bachelor o f Science degree, only one respondent believed that officers with a Bachelor of Science perform better than officers with a Bachelor of Arts degree.Seventy-five (75%) or 27 police chiefs believed there is no difference in work habits or performance regarding whether an officer has a Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science degree. The remaining respondents (25%) were uncertain as to whether there was a true difference among the types of degree. Whatever the case, a common theme emerged, We believe the quality of our officers and the services provided are enhanced by a better-educated workforce. Policing is an extremely complex profession, requiring individuals who can apply abstract concepts within difficult situations. We can also assign more complex duties to our officers. Table 9 reviews the police chief’s opinions regarding the future of the degree requirement, and whether they believed it would be altered in the future.It was clearly apparent that in these departments, th e degree requirement is a fixed quality. Table 9 Chiefs’ Opinions Regarding the Future of Their Degree Requirement Future Expectations f% Expect to retain requirement Indefinitely3391. 7 Expect requirement to be altered In future 2 5. 6 Uncertain 1 2. 8 Note. N=36. We hope to keep our degree requirement forever. With the high percentage of college graduates in today’s society, I don’t believe this requirement is unreasonable. It’s our goal to continue to pursue the ‘most qualified’ applicants for our police department. Many police departments are hesitant to adopt a mandatory educational requirement due to fears that applicant pools will dwindle if requirement is enforced.According to this sample, nearly 64% of police chiefs reported that their respective applicant pools have indeed decreased due to their educational mandate. However, others felt different. The four-year degree requirement has served us well. We typically receive about 70 app licants for every 1-3 openings we try to fill. All of which have the four-year degree and either enrollment or completion of the police academy. Another responded in a way to overcome the issue of lower applicant pools, cautioning a reason why this will not happen at large, Yes, the requirement decreases this applicant pool. In my opinion, for a department to have an educational requirement such as ours, a strong recruitment effort is necessary.We recruit over 15 northern Ohio colleges that have law enforcement majors programs to get an adequate number of participants to take our civil service tests. That is an expensive endeavor, one that most cities won’t make. † Table 10 reviews police chief’s opinions regarding application pools and their particular educational requirement. Table 10 Stability of Application Pools in Police Departments with Mandatory Four-Year Degree Requirement Level of Police Applicants f% Application pool has increased With degree requireme nt25. 6 Application pool has decreased With degree requirement 23 63. 9 Application pool has stayed the same 10 27. 8 Uncertain 12. 8 Note. N=36.One of the predominant reasons offered as to why more police departments do not have a mandatory degree requirement is that enforcing such a mandate would have a negative impact on recruiting. One chief replied, it’s ‘politically correct’ to lower education standards to avoid the wrath of the special interest-minority groups who wish to lower educational standards to increase the minority population in the applicant pool. Table 11 describes frequencies and percentages of police chiefs’ opinions regarding their requirement’s impact on minority recruiting. Interestingly, only 11% of respondents believed the requirement had a positive impact on recruiting minorities.Two interesting responses emerged regarding the process of calming the regarded negative impact on recruiting: If I can keep the requirement a few more years, we will have a majority of officers with degrees and there will be less internal pressure to lower standards. As long as we hire a significant percentage of minorities, there will be less claims of adverse impact—nine are female, five are Hispanic. We will evolve to the point that candidates for promotion with degrees are more likely to get the appointment. Lack of applicant pool and minorities. While this is true, it can be overcome. We have fewer applicants, but they are higher quality. Our recruitment methods continually change to reach our target audience. We work with many minority groups to reach out to minority populations. One respondent was adamant regarding this issue,The minority community that believes there would be an ‘adverse impact. ’ There isn’t. Table 11 Requirements Impact on Recruiting Minorities Level of Impact f % Requirement has had a positive Impact on recruitment of Minorities411. 1 Requirement has had a negative impac t on recruitment of minorities1027. 8 Requirement has had no impact on recruitment of minorities1130. 6 Uncertain 1130. 6 Note. N=36. Another important issue addressed concerns that highly relevant debate: Does a college degree make for a better police officer? The answer to that question among the 36 police chiefs was not unanimous, but the majority (80. 6%) indeed believed that officers with a degree perform better.In efforts to once again address this century-old debate, Table 12 describes the realities of police chiefs’ opinions on this theme. Table 12 Do Officers with a College Degree Perform Better? Police Chief’s Opinions f% Yes, officers with a degree perform better2980. 6 No, officers with a degree do not perform better 411. 1 Uncertain 3 8. 3 Note. N=36. In an attempt to dig deeper into the above issues and subjects, a qualitative approach was utilized to uncover themes predominant to this analysis. Although important descriptive information has been revealed , few attempts have been taken to qualitatively explore the two important issues relevant here—opinions of police chiefs from that one-percent of police departments with mandatory degree requirements.Herein, two final questions needed exploration: Why do their departments actually have their mandatory degree requirement and why they believe so few departments actually require the degree? After careful thought and consideration, they shared their opinions and beliefs—those of which should be held in high regard, as they are the select few who have shown to be pioneers in their concrete efforts to bring about professionalism to the policing field. Police Chief’s Explanations as to Why Their Respective Departments Have the Four-Year Degree Requirement Aside from stern recommendations encouraging police administrators and community leaders to adopt educational standards,Our department adopted the requirement based Carter, Sapp and Stephens findings and the recommend ations of the 1967 Presidential Advisory Commission on Criminal Justice Standards and Goals that said that a four-year degree should be required by all law enforcement by 1981 six themes emerged from analyzing the data regarding why these departments actually have the degree requirement. 1. It is our tradition and part of our institutional, organizational and community culture and we are valued. It’s our tradition. We are the only agency in the state that still requires a four-year degree. We have always required this and I believe we hire exemplary people with more maturity and a strong sense of direction than those without the degree. It’s really a huge part of our culture. We hope to keep our four-year educational degree requirement forever.With the high percentage of college graduates in today’s society, I don’t believe this requirement is unreasonable. It’s our goal to continue to pursue the ‘most qualified’ applicants for our dep artment One of the best things I did 17 years ago was to convince the governing body to pass the four-year degree requirement. Since then the department has hired 140 of our 160 officers (bright, educated and professional). After becoming Chief in 1992, I felt strongly that this would have a very positive impact on the department and it has. Very well-respected, very few discipline problems or concerns. 2. The degree carries with it a level of expertise, knowledge and perseverance that represent us in our communities well.The requirement for a bachelor’s degree generally assures that an applicant can read and write; has been exposed to complex written materials requiring some level of analysis; has developed some level of critical thinking and communication skills, and has achieved at least some measurable relatively long-term goal in their lifetime. A bachelor’s degree limits the number of applicants who, most probably, would not be selected anyway. It also increases the quality of the applicant pool (education-level wise), which makes for a better police officer and increases the minimum age of the applicants, making them more experienced in life. It also shows that you have people at the very least, had the ‘stick-to-it-ivness’ to persevere through four years of college. It also eliminates the need for education reimbursement for officers pursuing bachelor’s degrees. We believe that it provides us with a more mature, well-rounded and worldly candidate who has more experience interacting with many different people from all walks of life† 3. Education levels of the police force should mirror the education level of the communities they serve. To reflect the demographics of the community we serve. According to the Census, Wilmette has one of the highest education levels in America. We want to be representative of those we serve in race, gender, education level and foreign language. This is also a successful strategy for m aintaining high salaries and benefits. We wanted to ensure our police officers’ education level closely mirrored the education level and demographics of our community. Over 70% of adult residents in our community have a bachelor’s degree. 4.A belief in excellence and quality—the degree makes a difference in performance. The department instituted this educational requirement in 1993 due to the belief that educated officers will be better decision makers and have better communication skills, both in oral and written form Department belief of excellence—higher quality of service to community, being leaders in profession Quality candidate, self-thinking and less supervision. Enhanced knowledge, skills and abilities as well as communications skills (oral and written); critical thinking and analytical skills; broader viewpoints; more tolerant; foundation of criminal justice concepts; self-discipline; and time management.We believe that a better educated work-fo rce is necessary in dealing with the public and are higher educated. We also believe that education enhances communication skills which are necessary in police work. A higher educated person is a more rounded individual, which leads to a better police officer To have a better qualified work force 5. A belief that the mandatory degree promotes professionalism both in their communities and for the entire police field. We believe that this should be the standard if we are to continue to develop and promote a professional police organization Academics have pushed our department to a new level of professionalism and innovationTo significantly improve the quality of police services via intelligent, articulate and professional personnel To establish professional standards at entry-level We are located in a city with a university with a strong criminal justice program. We have several members of our police and fire commission who are affiliated with the university. The four-year degree requ irement enhances our professionalism. 6. Officers with a college degree are more mature and have stronger goal- reaching abilities. I feel that a person demonstrates his/her desire to be a police officer by completing four year of study in criminal justice. They prove not only a strong desire to become a police officer, but possess the ability to set a goal and achieve it.It also demonstrates that ability to learn. That is why a four-year bachelors degree in criminal justice, criminology or law enforcement exists. It is specific to those who set a goal for law enforcement and achieve it. Increases odds of mature/smart candidate. Maturity, dedication, experience and age of applicants are more suitable for employment. Police Chief’s Explanations as to Why They Believe So Few Departments in the U. S. Actually Require a Four-Year Degree Only three out of the 36 police chiefs surveyed stated that they were not satisfied with their department’s educational policy. However, o ver 90% were satisfied with their departmental policies requiring college degrees.Aside from the following two realities many police leaders encounter–one being that the college degree is not mandated as a requirement by most licensing boards, and it may be prevented because of civil service regulations–five themes emerged regarding police chiefs explanations as to why they believe so few departments actually require degrees: 1. It’s all about money and over-all job satisfaction that one perceives a college-degree should bring. We have issues retaining officers and we frequently lose them to higher paying positions outside the field of policing. University instructors, technical school instructors, social work have all been attractive to our officers.Governments are reluctant to pay the higher wages for an applicant with a degree. Most agencies cannot pay adequate salaries for advanced degrees. Higher degreed people are not satisfied being a police officer. Mone y. Most departments cannot afford to start our a patrol officer at what a college graduate could make It certainly can hurt the applicant pool, depending on the salary Possibly they believe their pay-rates are not high enough to attract college graduates. Lack of pay for many smaller agencies 2. The degree requirement decreases applicant pools. Although some did not agree, the majority of police chiefs surveyed stated their department’s mandatory degree equirement has reduced applicant pools. It reduces the pool of potential applicants at a time when suitable applicants are hard to find. There remains a high percentage of law enforcement executives and government officials who believe a four-year degree is not a necessity in preparing an individual for a law enforcement career. Because of the difficulty in finding a sufficient number of qualified candidates Reduction in applicant pool is significant 3. The chiefs in this studied strongly valued education, however education ov erall is under-valued in policing. Most chiefs say they value education, but stop short of making it a requirement. Education is under-valued in policing.The four-year degree requirement make recruiting tougher and it creates challenges for retaining personnel. † I still believe that the majority of police leaders are, as a law-enforcement culture, anti-education for police officers 4. Police leaders who have not attained a college degree may not find one necessary. Therefore, this presents itself as a great challenge, one of increasing overall education standards. Administrators may not believe a college degree is necessary, especially if they have not earned one

Essay on Homosexual Relationships

Essay on Homosexual Relationships Essay on Homosexual Relationships Homosexual relationships are romantic connections between two people of the same gender. These connections cover all cases of gays and lesbians. These relationships are not based on the willingness to procreate or nature moral values, but rather on the desire to fulfill the passions of the persons involved. Through the forums supported by human rights groups, many homosexuals have come in the limelight demanding legal recognition for their sexual orientations. James Skillen is one of such activists. He observes that governments should play passive roles when it comes to the issues of marriage. Instead, Skillen suggests that the government should learn to accommodate the â€Å"constantly changing definition of marriage† to make provisions for homosexual marriages (Skillen, 1). A similar observation was made by Ellie Schaack in his article â€Å"Gay Marriage is a Right†. Schaack points out that the right to marry is explicit and dependent on one’s unique attributes (Schaack, 1). Unfortunately, many countries are continually legalizing homosexuality. For instance, a US court was reported to have delivered a judgment forcing the federal government to amend laws to recognize gay marriages (Hurley, 2). Sexual desires should be used to set up family units under which social values and cultural norms get passed from one generation to another. The future of any society depends on the ability of the current generation to procreate and sustain values traditionally associated with that society. Family is the fundamental unit of the society and is, therefore, important for the formation of the society. Sex should serve as a tool for sustaining romantic relationships that result from marriage and formation of the family. Homosexuality does not reflect social welfare, but rather individualism. Instead of introducing legal provisions to promote homosexuality, the society should seek to help those in the practice so that they can relate to their healthy sexual desires. This is possible through medicine and psychological treatment.

Prostitution Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Prostitution - Essay Example In fact, it is one of those aspects of the society that has been acted upon since mankind came into existence. We find Greek literatures of 6th century BCE where three classes of prostitutes have been mentioned: ‘pornai’ or slave prostitutes, free born street prostitutes, ‘hetaera’, educated prostitute-entertainers who relished a level of social influence. Prostitution remained permissible throughout the Greek and Roman periods, until Christian Roman emperors intensely opposed it. Prostitution was seen in the medieval era as well. Though King Henry II discouraged it yet it was permitted. However, he ensured that no other laws were broken while this profession was carried out. During World War II, 80,000 to 300,000 girls and women were forcefully seized and sent to military battalions to serve the Japanese soldiers. Though India banned sex trafficking in 1956, yet it is found to be a home to Asia’s largest red-light-district. (Head) From Japan to South America and from India to England, we cannot deny the veracity of the fact that prostitution is prevalent everywhere in this world; and it is not a new trend that has started recently, but it has been executed since the creation of mankind. Perceiving prostitution from an economic point of view, we shall discover the causes, as to why this profession had to start. In ancient times, widowed women or unmarried women who did not have any medium of earning, either solely depended upon the little wealth that had been left behind by their husbands or their fathers or the last option for them would be to sell their bodies for money not only for the survival of themselves, but also to run a living for their family. Women found men with their uncontrollable urges and willingly submitted themselves to them to earn a living or for bartering goods. In the21st century where survival of women is not difficult, we still find many women involved in this profession due to their a ddiction of making