Running Head: SCHUSTER PRACTICE PAPER University Police Department 1

Schuster Final Paper

Michael Schuster

State University of New York College at Oswego

Practicum in Public Justice

Professor. Ryniker

April 23, 2015

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Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to display the presence of basic communication theory,

Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory and job design theory within a police department. The police

department where these theories were observed is the University Police Department at SUNY

Oswego. Observations were made from direct interactions with University Police officers while

going on patrol with them and while working alongside them as a student ticket writer.

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Each year many graduates enter the work force, the majority with a sense of uncertainty

of whether they will find work and if that job will be a career for them. Some of these graduates

are fortunate enough to have completed an internship with an agency in their desired career field.

That opportunity and experience eases this feeling of uncertainty, by offering the intern insight

into how a particular type of agency operates. The internship required that we (interns) apply

what we had learned in the class room to real life situations. In this paper, I will be relating basic

communications, Maslow’s hierarchy of needs and job design theories to the experiences and

observations I made while interning with University Police at SUNY Oswego. These experiences

will give me further insight into my desired career field, by giving me access to officers, who

serve as mentors by showing/discussing the pros and cons of the job as well as job

responsibilities and job structure.

The SUNY Oswego University Police Department is responsible for the enforcement of

laws and the overall safety and security of the Oswego campus. The officers within the agency

are responsible for the enforcement of state and local laws as well as the rules and regulations of

the Oswego campus. Under the educational and criminal procedural law university police

officers are able to make warrantless arrests if given probable cause, use force in making arrests

and can issue vehicle and traffic tickets as well as traffic summonses. Their agency contained a

patrol and investigative division as well as a parking office. Typically officers work 12 hour

shifts, consisting of 3 patrol officers, a lieutenant and a dispatcher. Although University Police

does have an investigator as well as chief and assistant chief within the agency, they usually are

not present during night shifts, unless circumstances, warrant otherwise. It should also be noted

that both Chief Rossi and Assistant Chief Velzy are on the administration’s payroll; that is they

are paid by the college and not the state as the rest of the department is.

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Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs Theory

The first theory in which, I found evident in the University Police Department is

Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory. As represented in the figure below, Maslow’s hierarchy of

needs consists of physiological, safety, love/belonging, esteem needs and ultimately self-

actualization. This self-

actualization can be

thought of as finding ones

purpose in life or

achieving happiness

within the workplace. The

lower level needs such as

physiological and safety

needs are considered the

basic needs for survival

and are frequently

achieved by most

agencies. The

love/belonging, esteem

and self-actualization

needs can be thought of Figure 1: Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. Retrieved from Google

images.

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as spiritual needs, since they are associated with an employee’s senses of belonging and purpose.

In accordance with Fisher, (2009) once a level of needs has been met, those types of needs no

longer become a motivator should circumstances remain the same. As one becomes closer to

achieving self-actualization, it becomes harder for employees to advance up the pyramid. As the

employee advances up the pyramid, their needs become more based on their relationships and

how they are viewed by their peers. I find that the structuring of Maslow’s pyramid depicted in

figure 1, establishes this by ranking love/belonging immediately after all basic needs have been

satisfied. If they are not well perceived by their peers, they will not receive respect or

appreciation for any of their contributions within the department.

As a law enforcement agency/paramilitary organization, the basic needs of the University

Police officers are easily met. These needs are met through the benefits mentioned on their

website http://www.oswego.edu/administration/police/about_us/officer_job.html; as well as the

equipment they are issued and required maintain and use in their job. This equipment includes:

their firearms, ammunition, Kevlar vests, flashlights, patrol cars, radios, criminal databases,

handcuffs and license plate readers to name a few. On top of that officers also receive continuous

training. Most of these safety measures are used every shift, for instance the use of the radio. It is

standard procedure for UP officers to radio in a vehicle description and location of their stop

before exiting their vehicle. Typically the officer will not exit the car until the dispatcher replies

back with the vehicle’s information. After approaching the vehicle and retrieving the driver’s and

passenger’s CID (client ID number), they will then relay this information to dispatch, who will

check various databases for hits regarding their driver’s license and criminal history.

Due to the substantial risk of physical harm, an officer is given an abundant amount of

physical protection as a means to counter the risk. However, the problem for maintaining

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motivation for police officers is located within the higher tier needs. The first of which being

love/belonging. Within police departments this sense of belonging can be aided by maintaining

positive relationships with co-workers on top of the completion of a police academy. Graduation

from the academy not only signifies the completion of their formal education, but it also signifies

the inclusion into a brotherhood. This sense of brotherhood (bonding) is instilled into the officer

through their training, which puts emphasis on taking care of your fellow officers. For UP this

tier is further strengthened by each officer’s friendship with each other. As noted from talking

with many of them, they often hang out with each other outside of work and are involved with

each other’s families.

The biggest obstacle for police officers to reaching self-actualization is their esteem level.

As figure 1 mentions, esteem needs refer to the achievement of results and the officer’s

recognition for their work. According to Udechukwa, (2009) and his study on parole officers,

police officers also work a thankless job. The lack of recognition is detrimental to officer self-

actualization since it detracts their sense of purpose. Like correctional officers, police officers are

responsible for detaining persons against their will who have been deemed harmful to themselves

or the general public. As I have witnessed both from my internship experience and on the news,

it is not uncommon for officers to be insulted and despised for performing their duties. For

example during my internship officer D had stopped a vehicle because the driver was talking on

his cellphone while driving. During this stop the driver said comments like “this is a bull****

ticket”, “I am allowed to look up music, if my phone is plugged in” and “I look forward to seeing

you in court!” All of this demonstrated the disrespect that officers receive from some offenders

and bystanders, just for doing their job.

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To further hinder their self-esteem needs, the UPD is divided into two payrolls:

administrative and state. As mentioned earlier the highest ranking personnel within the

department Chief Rossi and Assistant Chief Velzy are on the administrative payroll. Although I

have not seen this yet, there is the possibility that they make choices that favor the university

over the agency. This could nullify some of the achievements made by the officers thereby

diminishing their self-esteem levels.

On the other hand, the decentralized operational structure does permit the patrol officers

some free will when it comes to what they do on shift. It also allows them to execute their own

judgments when correcting violations of the law. As stated by Udechukwu (2009), other factors

that can effect self-esteem values of police officers are personality and the desire and opportunity

to help others. As outlined in figure 1 and discussed with officer C, self-actualization can only be

achieved through years on the job and a high level of self-confidence both in the officer’s

decision making skills and their contribution to the agency. By examining Maslow’s hierarchy of

needs theory within the UPD, I am able to see how each tier within Maslow’s hierarchy is met,

as well as the problems which are frequently met at the self-esteem level. However, given a good

and friendly relationship amongst fellow officers as well as the opportunity to help others the

fact that the job is often thankless can be compensated for and self-actualization can be reached

over the years.

Basic Communications Theory

Basic communication theory refers to the exchange of information between person A and

person B. Person A encodes a message who through the use of mediums sends the message out

to person B, who then decodes the message and infers meaning from that message (Stojkovic &

Kalinich, 2012). As Littlejohn and Foss (2005), stated that the completion of the dyad requires

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the observation by the receiver, intention to communicate by the sender, and normative

judgement on the part of the receiver (Stojkovic & Kalinich, 2012). The diagram below

illustrates the exchange of information from sender to receiver.

Communication between sender and receiver can be establish verbally or nonverbally. Verbal

communication would involve the use of direct statements, tone of voice, such as lingo

conversations, memos and logging of information into a database. Nonverbal communication can

involve the use of signs, sirens, weapons (not used frequently and only in the presence of a

significant life threat by UP officers) or gestures. An example of this within the UPD, which

occurred when officer C pulled over a vehicle for running a stop sign. Once the vehicle was

stopped we could see that the driver was visibly angry because he was flailing his arms around in

his vehicle, indicating rage and a potential combative person. While relaying the information to

dispatch and the other patrol units, he stated that the driver was angry. When officer D heard this

over the radio (medium) he interpreted it as officer C requesting backup and rushed towards his

location.

It should also be noted that all communications between University Police officers on

patrol and dispatch share the channel with the Oswego City police department as well as

SAVAC. Having more open channels of communication allows for agencies to become inter-

related and provide further assistance if needed. This was first observed when officer A had

pulled a vehicle over for speeding and believed it to be possibly trafficking drugs. The cause for

his suspicion was that the driver had $4,000 in cash in a bag and another $1,000 in his pocket.

Retrieved from (Stojkovic & Kalinich, 2012 p. 95).

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The driver claimed that the money was from a delivery, but had no receipt to verify his

statement. As a means of checking for drugs officer A delayed the driver, while he attempted to

contact a K-9 unit. While officer A was waiting for dispatch to verify the availability of a K-9

unit, Lieutenant B came to the scene to discuss the scenario in person. Since there were no K-9

units available, the officers did not feel there was enough probable cause for an arrest and only

issued the driver 2 tickets: 1 for speeding and the other for damages on the vehicle. Despite the

advantages of interagency communication, it is not guaranteed that another agency will receive

the intended message, as there are many barriers to communication. One example within UP,

was when officers were dispatched to the scene of a homicide, only to learn that they had been

given the wrong room number. Officer E informed me that, the only reason that the officers were

able to locate the actual scene was from noticing SAVAC’s ambulance parked on the opposite

side of the building. As Stojkovic et al state (2012), such communication gaps include:

1. Preconceived ideas- refer to a person holding prior information about the

incident/topic to be true and interprets new information to coincide with that

idea. An example of this would be the using a cellphone while driving stop

mentioned earlier. Based on source x, the driver believed he was legally able to

use his phone, since he was not using it to text or talk.

2. Personalized meanings- can be thought of as the misinterpreting of the message.

This was observed in the department's use of acronyms, many of which are not

understandable unless that party has a law enforcement background. Such

examples include: Uniform Traffic Stop (UTT), Client ID number (CID) Vehicle

& Traffic laws (V&T laws) and phonetic alphabet. 

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3. Lack of motivation or interest- deals with the desire to accomplish a particular

task, which can be effected by their involvement within the agency. Through

discussions with all officers, there was a personal distaste for odor complaints,

issuing parking tickets and picking up found property.

4. Non-credibility of the source- refers to the overall accuracy of the source of

origin. This was experienced first-hand, as I was given information about a

vehicle located in lot 1, when the area being described to me was another lot.

This resulted in me finding the vehicle, but radioing the wrong location, resulting

in an officer going to the wrong location before the information was corrected.

5. Lack of communication skills- describes the ability of both sender or receiver to

convey the message. This was demonstrated when I along with two officers were

tasked with closing off a lot to resolve a parking issue. Since the officers and I

had other tasks to do within the lot, I placed cones in front of the parking lot

entrance as a nonverbal cue to the general public not to enter on top of the one

way sign already in place. Vehicles continued to enter the lot from the one way,

until I physically stood in front of the entrance and verbally told them the lot was

closed.

6. Poor organizational climate- relates to an employee’s sense of belonging within

the agency or how well they trust and share information with other members, as

supported by (Kean, 2004). Kean found that many FBI case workers chose not to

share their cases out of fear of it being recorded and becoming accessible to the

courts.

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7. The use of complex channels- refers to the amount of channels a message must

go through and the likelihood of it being altered during the process.

8. Denial of contrary information(cognitive dissonance theory) - is the complete

disregarding of any information not supportive of one’s own beliefs resulting

from a preference for consistency (PFC). PFC can be conceptualized as an

internalized need to act or seem consistent with one’s previous actions (Nolan &

Nail, 2014). They further note that any violation of one’s expectations can be

referred to as dissonance.

In a study of Leon Festinger’s theory, Nolan & Nail (2014), analyzed the PFC of

individuals and their likelihood to decrease their perception/beliefs about a person if those beliefs

were violated. They found high PFC participants were more likely to lower their expectations of

that person after having an expectation violated. This was established with the scenario of being

invited out to dinner by a friend, only to be stood up. Participants were then asked if they would

accept the offer by the friend if made again. They concluded that the dissonance experienced by

high-PFC individuals resulted from a motivation to avoid future inconsistencies and subsequent

dissonance (Nolan & Nail, 2014).

Another factor explaining the denial of contrary information is that people lie! They lie

because they know that they are in trouble and don’t want to admit guilt. It has been suggested

that officers and nonofficers pay specific attention to the violator’s behavior. Nonverbal

communication can suggest that someone is lying, but it might also signify the person’s fear and

nervousness when dealing with police. If behavioral cues were clean pathways to veracity, then

message recipients (at least those more experienced or properly trained) would be able to

accurately assess honesty by observing the senders’ behavior. This prediction is at odds with

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research findings accumulated over several decades. (Masip & Herrero, 2014). In accordance

with Masip, Alonso, Garrido & Herrero (2006) cue training may bias judgments toward

deception rather than increasing accuracy (Masiq & Herrero, 2014). This can result in

preconceived ideas and can result in the decoding of an inaccurate message. As a means to avoid

this both officers B and C use a technique called “verbal judo”. Verbal judo can be thought of as

a direct means of getting an admission of guilt. When explained by officer B, he said his

approach is “I am officer…. I have arrested/pulled you over because….. why did you do it? Here

he states what they did wrong and is asking for them to admit guilt to the act. By doing so avoids

a potential argument that may result if asked “do you know why” This confession is then logged

by the officer and can later be used by the officer as a reminder to themselves at a future date as

a clear statement for the courts, should the officer have to appear in court.

This method of obtaining information has been used numerous times by UP officers on

shift. For instance a driver had responded “I know I get pulled over all the time” when stopped

for her window tints, this informed officer B, that not only was she aware of the violation but

that warnings had no effect on her. A second example occurred when officer C pulled a vehicle

over for driving on the side walk. When asked why, he claimed “he didn’t do it until he saw the

other delivery drivers do it”, which was not only is an admission of guilt, but informed officer C

that he knows of others who have done it.

By examining the presence of basic communications theory within UPD, I was able to

note some communication barriers such as cognitive dissonance theory and lying can be

countered with verbal judo. Cognitive dissonance theory explains people have a preference for

consistency, which explains to me the occurrence of repeat offenders that I have encountered

while writing parking tickets. I also noticed that as the semester passed, more drivers attempted

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to avoid receiving parking tickets for wrong area by covering up their parking permits and by

placing old tickets on their windshield (I witnessed several drivers in the act and issued them a

new ticket). As mentioned earlier when dealing with people who have been corrected before and

continue to do wrong, warnings will not work and fines or arrests are the best course of

corrective action.

Job Design Theory (Herzberg’s Motivation-Hygiene Theory

Job design theory can best be explained as any process, by which an agency attempts to

reduce/eliminate job dissatisfaction while raising employee productivity. As supported by

Stojkovic et al (2012) job design theory is linked to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs and Herzberg’s

motivation-hygiene theory. As mentioned earlier with Maslow’s needs theory, employees desire

to have their needs met and strive to make improvements. As they advance up the pyramid, the

lower level needs no longer motivate the employee. Since the current incentives for improvement

have now been met, management must change the structure of the job as a means to maintain

employee motivation. The employee’s current tier level determines what employee goals a

manager needs to tailor their incentives towards reaching (Udechukwa, 2009).

Herzberg’s motivation-hygiene theory was designed with the purpose of determining the

high and low points of an employee’s career. It determined two motivational factors for

productivity: 1 hygiene factors- are influences which are not associated with the requirements of

the job, but can have significant effects on the worker’s performance of their duties. Such factors

include pay, supervision, physical conditions at the site, and interpersonal relationships. These

factors are extrinsic and believed to be the cause of dissatisfaction. Those factors responsible for

causing the satisfaction associated with Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, are intrinsic factors called

motivators. These factors include responsibility, recognition, and opportunities for promotion

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and learning. As supported by Udechukwa (2009), Fisher (2009), and Stojkovic & Kalinch,

(2012), the satisfaction/ dissatisfaction caused by motivation-hygiene factors can best be

portrayed using Maslow’s hierarchy of needs pyramid, but instead of one advancing to the next

tier after satisfying needs, the tiers are shifted left and right according to satisfaction

dissatisfaction.

As figure 3 shows, needs that have more factors favoring satisfaction are shifted to the left while

those favoring dissatisfaction are shifted to the right (Stojkovic & Kalinch, 2012). In the

background lies the needs according to Maslow’s hierarchy (Udechukwa, 2009 & Fisher, 2009).

Self -actualization

Esteem

Love/Belonging

Safety

Physiological

DissatisfactionSatisfaction

Figure 3. A modified hierarchy of needs based Herzberg’s motivational-hygiene theory,

depicting satisfaction and dissatisfaction levels within tiers.

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Since separate factors need to be considered, depending on whether "job satisfaction" or "job

dissatisfaction" is being examined, it follows that these feelings are not opposites of each other.

The opposite of "job satisfaction" is not "job dissatisfaction" but rather, no job satisfaction; and

similarly, the opposite of "job dissatisfaction" is not "job satisfaction," but no "job satisfaction."

(Udechukwu, 2009).

Figure 3 also serves as a representation of UPD in accordance with Herzberg’s

motivation-hygiene theory. For the physiological needs, most officers do not receive enough

sleep due to being required to work 12 hour shifts. There is also no food provided for them and

the pay is moderate. As a result one would expect more dissatisfaction to be generated from this

tier. Moving on up comes the safety aspect, which generates the most satisfaction. The officers

have numerous amounts of specific equipment designed to safeguard them and make the

performance of their job easier. On top of that they receive continuous training in order to keep

them up to date with the latest threats and policies. In regards to their belonging needs most of

the officers consider each other friends both on and off duty. Next lies their esteem needs, which

as mentioned earlier has a negative hygiene factor due to the lack of respect given to them by

some members of the general population. Despite this, this tier causes satisfaction because of

how the shifts are structured. Despite having a lieutenant on shift, the lieutenant is not always

present at every call or “breathing over the patrol officer’s shoulder”. This grants the patrol

officer some autonomy in what they can set out to do during the shift as well as during stops. The

following tier is the esteem needs, which as discussed with officer C is dependent on the specific

officer. The figure above represents a general categorization for all officers as a collective based

upon my own analysis. Both Maslow’s hierarchy of needs and Herzberg’s motivation-hygiene

theory rely on the individual officer’s belief of whether or not their needs have been satisfied and

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if they are content with their job and career choice. Since self-actualization cannot be achieved if

there is even moderate dissatisfaction, any officer who found themselves to be adequately

represented by this figure would not have reached self-actualization. However, based upon the

officer’s progression within the needs pyramid management (chief/assistant chief) can modify

the overall job description performed by the patrol officers so that they can decrease the

dissatisfaction caused by unmet physiological needs and increase satisfaction caused by

motivators.

In conclusion my internship experience with UPD at Suny Oswego has allowed me to

observe the occurrence the theories that I have learned about as a student. In addition it has also

given me the opportunity to witness how police officers spend their shifts and, their perspectives

on the stops/arrests made. Further-more I was able to see how they function as a team and how

vital communication is for their operations. Adequate communication allows for officers to

improve their need for safety and can avoid job dissatisfaction as discussed with Maslow’s needs

theory Herzberg’s motivational theory respectively. As previously mentioned, police

departments excel at satisfying safety and belonging needs. My internship experience combined

with my research has shown me that most of the job’s dissatisfaction and conflicts arise from

interactions with the public. Furthermore, my internship with UPD at Suny Oswego has allowed

me to observe the problems faced within the field of policing and how officers are to resolve

them safely and properly.

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