Police analysts on the job in Canada: work experiences, data work, and the move towards evidence-based policing

ABSTRACT

Analysts working within police services play a key role in translating data into usable and understandable forms of knowledge for police personnel. Despite the increased focus on data and research in policing, we know little about the everyday data work of police analysts. In this article, we review the literature on analysts’ experiences and draw on survey data from analysts working in police services across Canada to examine the types of data work they routinely engage in and the value placed on their work by police personnel. Our findings suggest that analysts are underutilized and spend much of their time reporting descriptive statistics rather than performing more sophisticated analyses. While analysts perceived their work as being valued by police personnel, they did not think it was understood or used to its full extent. We conclude the paper by discussing the implications of these findings on the move towards evidence-based policing.

KEYWORDS:

• Data work
• crime analysts
• police data
• evidence-based policing

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Christopher D. O’Connor

Christopher D. O’Connor is an Associate Professor in the Criminology and Justice program at Ontario Tech University [University of Ontario Institute of Technology]. His research interests include policing, youth, emerging technology, and energy boomtowns.

John Ng

John Ng is a Special Constable and Crime Analyst with a Canadian Police Agency. His research interests are in evidence based policing, crime analysis, environmental criminology, police culture, and police leadership.

Dallas Hill

Dallas Hill is currently pursuing her PhD in Criminology and Social Justice at Ontario Tech University [University of Ontario Institute of Technology]. Her current research interests include policing in the digital age with a specific focus on big data, emerging technologies, and surveillance.

Tyler Frederick

Tyler Frederick is an Associate Professor in the Criminology and Justice program at Ontario Tech University [University of Ontario Institute of Technology]. His research areas include policing, youth homelessness, and mental health.