Organisational Justice in the Management of Online Risks and Harms to UK Police Professionals

Aston, Elizabeth; Wong, Yen Nee; Horgan, Shane

Abstract

This paper explores how online risks and harms to police professionals are managed by drawing from 50 interviews with managers from 4 UK police forces. We adopt an organisational justice lens (Colquitt, 2001) to consider fairness in the context of managing online harms internally. Building on Bradford and Quinton (2014), we examine fairness in relation to procedures, organisational openness and transparency, consistency of decision making, respectfulness of personal interactions and two-way communication. We argue there is an uneven approach among line managers, with strategies shaped by responses to different landscapes of risk (Wong et al., forthcoming). We explore generational differences including younger officers’ expectations of leading a full digital life and managing tensions between their right to a private life while mitigating risks of online harms professionally. Public-facing police professionals face particular role-related harms and require organisations to protect and support them more systematically. Challenges emerge in relation to minority officers who experience online harms related to protected characteristics and do not receive an adequate organisational response, often highlighting the importance of support from staff associations. We argue that whilst procedural aspects are relatively clear to managers, support is fragmented and therefore distributive justice is less demonstrable.

Citation

Aston, E., Wong, Y. N., & Horgan, S. (2024, November). Organisational Justice in the Management of Online Risks and Harms to UK Police Professionals. Presented at 2024 American Society of Criminology Annual Meeting, San Francisco, California

• Presentation Conference Type: Presentation / Talk
• Conference Name: 2024 American Society of Criminology Annual Meeting
• Start Date: Nov 13, 2024
• End Date: Nov 16, 2024
• Acceptance Date: Jun 1, 2024
• Deposit Date: Dec 6, 2024
• Peer Reviewed: Not Peer Reviewed