The Police and Social Change
| Published date | 01 July 1985 |
| DOI | 10.1177/0032258X8505800311 |
| Author | G. Markham |
| Date | 01 July 1985 |
| Subject Matter | Article |
G.
MARKHAM,
B.A.
Assistant ChiefConstable. Essex.
THE POLICE
AND
SOCIAL
CHANGE
The ultimate goal of the social sciences is the explanation of social
change: unfortunately, despite protestations to the contrary, there
are no law-like generalizations and we are no closer to the dream of
prophecy now than we ever were. The social sciences have not and
probably will not develop a coherent theory of social change and we
shall be left as we are now to contemplate what will happen
tomorrow without any clear idea to assist us.
Given that we cannot predict the future, one could hope that the
present is a reasonably stable platform, but this turns out not to be
the case since, in societal terms, "nothing endures but change" -
change, ranging from the marginal to the radical, is characteristic of
all societies at all times. Social change affects individuals, groups,
organizations and institutions; British society is not exempt from
social change and neither is the British Police Service. The British
Police Service is a reasonably powerful institution within the British
social system and it, along with many other institutions, attempts to
understand social change and respond to it. Indeed it can be argued
thatfailure to do so will lead inevitably to pressures on the police that
could be followed by severe dislocation, with catastrophic results for
the institution and the society it serves.
How does one identify the process of social change? In so far as the
Police Service is concerned, social change can manifest itself in the
form of radional debate within the democratic institutions of society
or in violent public disorder, or in any form between those two
extremes.
Given thatthere are indicators of social change, when it takes place
it is encumbent upon the Police Service to adopt astance towards it.
If
change is continuous and we do not know any particular
outcome, this stance must be one embedded in a policing
philosophy.
It
must never beleft to the fickle winds offate,which can
lead to an altogether partisan or ambivalent role depending upon
how something is seen by a particular individual at a particular
moment in time. Throughout
our
history, industry and industrial
relations have undergone change and these changes themselves
comprise social change in one of its rawest forms. The miners' strike
can certainly be described in these terms and I suggest that it was not
mere pragmatic reaction that caused the police serviceto respond in
the way it did.
If
change is seen as coming through contest between particular
groups -whether this contest be peaceful or violent - it can be seen
July
1985 263
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