Book review: Behavioural Skills For Effective Policing
| Author | Keith Floyd |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1177/0032258X221137001 |
| Published date | 01 March 2023 |
| Date | 01 March 2023 |
| Subject Matter | Book Review |
Book Review
The Police Journal:
Theory, Practice and Principles
2023, Vol. 96(1) 172–178
© The Author(s) 2022
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DOI: 10.1177/0032258X221137001
journals.sagepub.com/home/pjx
Book review
Behavioural Skills For Effective Policing. Edited by Mark Kilgallon and Martin Wright. Critical Publishing:
2022, pp 254. ISBN 9781914171383
Reviewed by: Keith Floyd, Keith Floyd, University of Huddersfield, UK
Behavioural Skills For Effective Policing The Service Speaks is an introduction to the
‘people skills’or ‘soft skills’required of police officers and staff dealing with individuals,
families, communities and other groups in traumatic or stressful situations. The focus of
the book is threefold: firstly to define and understand what these skills are and illustrate
what effective use of them looks like. The book recognises a dearth of academic research
and publication in this area and purports to begin to bridge that gap by recognising and
promoting the core policing skills which wrongfully pale into insignificance amidst a
tradition of measurement of policing success through quantitative performance man-
agement systems. Although it has previously been largely unwritten about, the authors
suggest policing is a profession involving people as providers and recipients of a service.
It is the qualitative aspect of how well these soft, people or behavioural skills are exercised
which provides any satisfaction factor in situations which otherwise may not offer any
comfort, solace or reward to witnesses, victims, police or other parties involved. Secondly,
the editors reveal their motivation, apart from foregrounding the importance of behav-
ioural skills, was to promote the professionalisation of policing by providing the op-
portunity for carefully selected serving and recently retired officers and staff from all roles
and ranks, along with key collaborators, to publish their critical self-reflections. Thirdly, it
was hoped that this book would act as a catalyst to open the gateway to encourage more
serving officers and staff to disseminate their knowledge and skills through academic
publications, whether co-produced with academics or not. This fulfils the sentiment
contained in the charming dedication to Tank Waddington. Also touching is the fact that
all royalties from the book are being donated to the Police Care UK charity. Deliberately
bridging the gap between theory and practice, the overall focus is the practical application
of behavioural skills. As a gateway text, it is hoped it will invite further research and
publications in this fertile area by practitioners and academics. The intended audience is
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