Several countries require professionals to report intimate partner violence (IPV) to the police. In Norway, this obligation is referred to as a “duty to avert” and permits prevention either through police reporting or ”other means”. The duty applies to all citizens, including police officers who also serve as the primary receivers of mandatory reports. This places the police in a complex, twofold role. This mixed methods study explores how police officers in preventive units perceive the police’s role, responsibilities and routines related to the duty to avert IPV. The study draws on 12 in-depth interviews with police officers and questionnaire responses from N = 374 professionals including police officers across Norway. Findings reveal tensions between investigative and preventive mandates. Officers primarily view themselves as receivers of mandatory reports, and while risk assessment is prioritised, risk management efforts are constrained by organisational structures, resources and reliance on victim and offender cooperation.
The aim of this study is to explore how investigative police officers experience interviewing victims of domestic violence, focusing on the strategies they use and the professional challenges they encounter. While prior research highlights the importance of trust and relational qualities in investigative interviewing, particularly when working with vulnerable groups, there is limited knowledge about how these principles are enacted in practice. Drawing on qualitative, semi-structured interviews with eleven investigative police officers in Sweden, the study identifies four interrelated themes: building trust, emotional burdens and internal conflicts, timing, and empowering the victim. The findings show that participants rely on their ability to interpret subtle cues, adapt communication, and manage victims’ emotional states, using themselves as instruments to facilitate disclosure. At the same time, the study highlights professional challenges, including emotional strain, role conflicts between caring and supportive approaches and the investigative responsibility to remain objective, ethical dilemmas related to victims’ safety and respect for their integrity, and organizational constraints such as long waiting times. Taken together, these findings illustrate how investigative interviewing in domestic violence cases involves balancing relational sensitivity with organizational conditions and institutional demands.
This study examines how police officers in the Norwegian police experience the process of organisational learning after terror-related incidents. The empirical data was collected through in-depth interviews with 14 police officers involved in the response to three recent terror-related incidents, and the learning activities following these incidents. The findings indicate that there is room for improvement in how the police organisation both evaluates terror-related incidents and implements suggested improvements. Evaluations are found not to be holistic evaluations of the whole responses, leaving parts of the police’s performance not formally evaluated. For evaluations to contribute to learning, the findings show the need for a learning culture and the avoidance of the negative stress associated with evaluations. The implementation of suggested improvements after evaluations is found to be demanding, and the involvement of police officers in the implementation process is insufficient. To improve implementation, the findings show the importance of involvement and communication in helping to create a shared understanding of suggested improvements. The lack of a systematic approach and time dedicated to learning from experiences, including time for training and exercises, is found to be a main challenge for organisational learning.
A persistent debate in police education concerns the academisation of police training and practice. Specifically, the bachelor’s thesis has highlighted the tension between theory and practice. This study explores how the thesis can promote systematic experiential learning and contribute toward providing critical insight into practice. It originates from a pedagogical pilot project at the Norwegian Police University College (NPUC), where the use of scientific essay (SE) was introduced. SE was chosen for its stronger emphasis on experiential learning than other thesis formats. Analysis of SEs and an open questionnaire generated three main themes in students’ learning processes: i) Students were motivated to write SE because they perceived themselves as non-academic; ii) A personal willingness to engage in emotional work and dialogue to foster understanding; and iii) Lessons learned fostered an expanded “police gaze”. These themes are discussed in light of research on police students’ learning and socialisation in practice, transformative learning theory, and theory of practical knowledge.
This study aims to understand how police students perceive police social media communication in relation to their future roles as police officers. In today’s digital society, social media has become an essential communication tool for police authorities. These platforms enable them to engage with the public, share information about their activities, build trust, and promote public safety. This study is a small-scale case study, gathering empirical material from five semi-structured interviews and 15 written survey responses from police students. The findings of this small-scale case study demonstrate that while students acknowledge the importance of police presence on social media, they express concerns about the lack of formal training in this area. Many students feel unprepared to navigate the complexities of social media communication, particularly in relation to fostering public trust and safety. The article highlights the need to integrate social media communication skills into police training to ensure that future officers are equipped to effectively engage in digital spaces to foster public safety and security.
Responding to people in suicidal crisis is a significant part of the work of Swedish police patrol officers (PPOs). PPOs can prevent suicide and provide the person in crisis with support, but their presence can also have unintended effects, like escalation of the situation and stigma. The aim of this study was to describe PPOs’ experiences and actions when they encounter people in suicidal crisis. The study was performed with an inductive and descriptive qualitative design using the critical incident technique (CIT). A total of 26 PPOs were interviewed. Their experiences could be grouped under the main areas Navigating on the edge of chaos, The stakes are high and A split objective, and their actions under the main categories Striving for control, Pursuing adaptation and Engaging in collaboration. The results give us insights in the balancing acts PPOs perform when confronting people in suicidal crisis, as they must weigh providing safety and control against being present, adapting to suffering, and the specific needs of the situation and the individual.
Background: Persons living with dementia (PLWD) are at an increased risk of going missing, with an elevated risk of harm. In Sweden, thousands of PLWD go missing annually, and the police are responsible for locating them. However, there is limited knowledge about the key factors that contribute to effective search efforts. Therefore, this study aimed to identify these key factors as expressed by police experts. Method: Using the Delphi technique, this exploratory study sought consensus among 43 Swedish police search experts over three rounds. The consensus was set at ≥70%. Results: Of the initial 73 items described by individual police experts, 53 reached consensus among the expert group. Five categories were identified: Information, Search Management, Search Tactics, Knowledge, and Collaboration. Discussion/conclusion: Limited situational awareness and lack of structure can hamper police search efforts when PLWD go missing. Knowing the person, critical partners, and the terrain all enhance search effectiveness.
Focused deterrence-based strategies have been implemented in the United States since the mid-1990s, and the evidence base of their effect on serious crime is growing. Focused deterrence, also referred to as pulling levers, directs attention to the most violent members of a community, and conveys a clear message that violence will be met by swift and severe consequences and that those who want to leave criminality will receive help and support to do so. The strategy shifts focus from the victim to the perpetrator. The most violent, or those at risk of committing repeated crimes in a close relationship are identified and divided into groups (A–D) based on the severity of their crime. These individuals are informed that they are identified as (potential) perpetrators of violence in an intimate relationship and that future incidents of violence will be met with different types of sanctions. At the same time, support is offered to stop the violence, while support is also offered to the victim. This approach has been tried to prevent intimate partner violence to a limited extent before and is now being implemented in Malmö, Sweden. This paper will describe the initial phases of the process of implementing the strategy.
Lethal violence in intimate relationships is frequently preceded by less severe forms of abuse. In Sweden, the clearance rate for non-aggravated assault remains low, partly due to organisational goal conflicts within the police force. Consequently, the police face challenges in both resolving intimate partner violence (IPV) cases and preventing escalation into more serious violence. This study aims to advance understanding of the investigative process concerning IPV in Sweden and examine whether investigative measures differ depending on the relationship between victim and perpetrator – whether intimate, acquainted, or unfamiliar. The analysis draws on police investigations conducted in Stockholm between 2016 and 2021. Findings indicate that structural limitations, particularly victim non-cooperation, significantly constrain the investigation of non-aggravated IPV. This reluctance impacts the application of investigative measures and often leads to early case closures when prosecution appears unlikely. These results underscore the need for more effective strategies to enhance victim engagement and improve the overall investigative process in IPV cases.
The Istanbul Convention requires the police to have a robust system for effectively and systematically preventing repeat incidents of intimate partner violence (IPV) and for protecting the victim. Performing risk assessments is crucial to this end. Despite having had the risk assessment tool SARA:SV at their disposal since 2013, Norwegian police have not handled IPV cases as they are obliged to by the Convention. From 2022 onward the risk assessment should have been performed by a preventive risk analyst, but as this expertise is a scarce resource, the police system lacks robustness. Robustness may be achieved by using the capacity of frontline police officers. In that case, other risk assessment tools that are easier to score than SARA:SV should be made available, e.g., actuarial tools such as the Canadian ODARA or the Spanish VioGén system.
Online romance fraud (ORF) is a complex form of cyber-enabled fraud, characterised by manipulative techniques and dynamics akin to those observed in domestic violence, coercive control, and intimate partner violence. In ORF, fraudsters employ persuasive strategies to build trust and establish fictitious relationships, subsequently exploiting victims financially and emotionally. This article examines ORF and identifies enabling factors, including risk and protective factors, that contribute to ORF. The analysis draws on findings from scholarly and grey literature and is guided by the social-ecological framework (Bronfenbrenner, 1979, 1986; Stokols, 1996, 2018) and routine activity theory (Cohen & Felson, 1979), both of which inform holistic crime prevention. The analysis highlights the multifaceted enabling factors and dynamics that influence ORF susceptibility and victimisation, particularly in the Nordic and Norwegian contexts. This article offers a holistic framework to address ORF and enhance crime-prevention strategies, conceptualising the phenomenon as a hybrid of cyber-enabled fraud and emotional and economic partner violence, thereby informing future research and practice.
People with speech, language, and communication needs (SLCN) frequently experience barriers in their meetings with the legal system, and equal access to justice is not yet a reality for them. One area for improvement seems to be police officers’ competence about SLCN and how to provide support for people with SLCN during investigative interviewing. In this study, eight Norwegian police officers participated in focus-group interviews to share their perspectives on using alternative and augmentative communication (AAC) when interviewing victims with SLCN. Participants highlighted the need for information about SLCN and AAC at all levels of the legal system, so that support needs of people with SLCN could be better understood and supported also beyond the context of the investigative interview. Moreover, findings indicate that participants were highly motivated to give a voice to people with SLCN so that they could be heard in the legal justice system. At a practical level, participants identified challenges with finding appropriate graphic symbols to support communication during the police interview, and they suggested building an expert network for police officers who conduct AAC-facilitated interviews.
This study explores how police officers and civilian investigators in Sweden describe their knowledge and experiences of handling sexual crimes involving people with intellectual disabilities—a group disproportionately affected by such crimes and often marginalized in justice processes. A thematic analysis was conducted based on qualitative research interviews with 12 informants, and analyzed through the lens of intersectional disability theory. The study identified three central themes: a) gut feeling as a tool, b) particularly underreported sexual crimes, and c) cooperation as a strategy. The findings show how institutional practices may reproduce or challenge legal marginalization and highlight gaps in competences, routines, and coordination. The study concludes that a disability-informed and intersectional approach within the justice system is needed to ensure equitable treatment, improve support, and uphold the legal rights of people with intellectual disability.
This article examines the historical development of in-field training within Swedish police education from its centralization in 1967 to the present. By tracing key reforms, we analyze how the length, structure, and purpose of in-field training have shifted over time. Compared to other Scandinavian countries, Sweden has the shortest period of in-field training, raising concerns about its role in police education. Despite efforts to enhance supervision and establish clearer learning objectives, in-field training remains marginalized, with no clear consensus on its function. Drawing on the research field of practical knowledge, we investigate in-field training as a structured learning process essential for professional development. We argue that the historical uncertainty surrounding in-field training reflects a broader lack of recognition of in-field training as an integral part of police education, reinforcing a persistent divide between theoretical instruction and practical experience.
Critical incident policing challenges the cognitive capacities of police officers. This study examines third-year police students’ reported thinking processes during a critical incident simulation, focusing on rumination, characterised by persistent and repetitive dwelling on thoughts, experiences, or personal states. Thematic analysis of interviews with ten participants concluded on three main themes: “Preparatory thoughts”, “tuning into the situation” and “the aftermath”, each encompassing multiple subthemes. Our analysis suggests that differentiating between rumination’s constructive and unconstructive aspects aids in understanding police students’ thinking processes in this context. For the most part, participants reported engaging in constructive facets of deliberate and concrete rumination before and during the exercise. Post-exercise, their thinking became more evaluative and reflective, often focusing on negatively valenced content. Such thinking could potentially lead to both constructive reflection and unconstructive brooding rumination. We propose that police training could benefit from encouraging deliberate and concrete rumination during and reflective rumination after exercises to enhance cognitive preparedness for critical incidents in later duty.
Criminal justice officials use their discretion to refer cases to victim-offender mediation. Working with time constraints, however, they may limit case referral, or gatekeep mediation to maintain efficiency. Recent studies also report the purposeful use of mediation to manage demand. Drawing on street-level bureaucracy, this study analyzes how criminal justice officials in Finland implement mediation while coping with conflicts of interest. The data consists of semi-structured interviews (N=17) with police officers and prosecutors. The term gate-pushing is introduced to account for the excessive use of mediation. The results show that police and prosecutors cope with dilemmas related to knowledge maintenance, resource constraints, and assessing consent to mediation. Many coping strategies prioritize clients, implying access to mediation. However, others advocate either for the underuse or overuse of mediation, suggesting both gatekeeping and gate-pushing. This study highlights the importance of studying gate-pushing to understand the challenges involved in integrating restorative and criminal justice.
