Psychological factors as predictors of readiness to combat crime among police officers in Osun State Command, Nigeria
| Author | Adeboye Titus Ayinde,Olusola Abayomi Ayegun |
| Published date | 01 December 2018 |
| Date | 01 December 2018 |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1177/1461355718814852 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
Article
Psychological factors as predictors
of readiness to combat crime among
police officers in Osun State
Command, Nigeria
Adeboye Titus Ayinde
(Department of Psychology,) Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria
Olusola Abayomi Ayegun
(Department of Psychology,) Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria
Abstract
The increasing crime rate and apparent reduction in combatting crime by law enforcement agencies in Nigeria, particularly
the Nigerian Police, deserve attention from a psychological point of view. This study examined the extent to which locus
of control and emotional intelligence (EI) predict readiness to combat crime among police officers in Osun State Police
Command, Nigeria. The study used primary data embedded in a descriptive survey design. A multistage sampling technique
was adopted to obtain data from the sample population. Three police area commands in Osun State, namely Osogbo, Ile-
Ife and Ilesa, were selected for the study. The sample comprised 258 police officers selected using a stratified random
technique with different units of command as the basis of stratification. Three instruments, the Work Locus of Control
Scale, Brief Emotional Intelligence Scale and Readiness to Combat Crime Scale were used. Data were analysed using
descriptive (percentage count) and inferential statistics (linear regression and t-test). The results showed that locus of
control did not significantly predict readiness to combat crime among policeofficers in Osun State Command [F(1,214) ¼
0.371; p> 0.05], whereas EI [F(1,225) ¼131.045; p< 0.05] did. The study concluded that EI successfully predicted
readiness to combat crime among police officers in Osun State Command, whereas locus of control had no influence.
Keywords
Locus of control, emotional intelligence, crime combat, police readiness, Nigeria
Submitted 18 Dec 2017, accepted 26 Sep 2018
Background
The recent upsurge in violent crime in Nigeria may have
created enormous uncertainty regarding the safety of life
and individual property, and social stability in general.
Armed robbery, arson, drug-trafficking and abuse, murder,
kidnapping, rape, hired assassinations and ritual killing,
coupled with rising insurgency, are examples of the most
serious and violent crimes, and incidents seem to have
increased in the recent past. Correspondingly, ‘white collar’
crimes in the form of advance fee fraud (popularly known
as419), contract deals, embezzlement and mismanagement
in both the publicand private sectors also appear to be on the
increase. Odekunle (2005) notes that Nigeria has been
experiencingwhat is referred to in the criminology literature
as a ‘crime problem’.The magnitude of crimes mostly com-
mitted by the less privileged and white collar crimes mostly
committedby the highly placed individuals,call for a change
in the strategiesused to prevent and control crime in Nigeria
(Brownson, 2012). Daniel (2011) opines that ‘A situation
Corresponding author:
Adeboye Titus Ayinde, Department of Psychology, Obafemi Awolo wo
University, Ile-Ife, Osun State, Nigeria.
Emails: ayindade@oauife.edu.ng; adedickson@yahoo.com
International Journalof
Police Science & Management
2018, Vol. 20(4) 296–305
ªThe Author(s) 2018
Article reuse guidelines:
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DOI: 10.1177/1461355718814852
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