Police Officer Process

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There are there are four distinct stages in the process of becoming a law enforcement officer. The four stages of becoming a police officer in terms of socialization are pre-entry, admittance, change, and continuance. The pre-entry stage centers on the factors that mold one’s decision to become a police officer. The person has survived the hiring process. Academy training commences, exposing the novice to a variety of startling and bewildering experiences. The change stage or encounter stage is the third period. After graduating from the academy, the rookie meets the harsh realities of the streets. This awakening is sometimes rude and abrupt. The rookie is never alone during this period.
He or she accompanies a senior training officer everywhere. The training officer becomes the guide or, as one new officer phrased it, “the patron saint” (Doerner, 1985). The final stage is the continuance stage or metamorphosis. Almost all new officers are infected with “rookie-itis.” They are idealistic, naïve, sympathetic, and trusting. Given enough time, rookies lose their initial enthusiasm. They sift through their emotions and become more settled. They have experienced the job with all its thrills and headaches. They have grown disillusioned with their department, the criminal justice process, the public, and even themselves (Doener, 2016).
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It can be defined as a process of learning about different domains (e.g., task, role, politics, and relationships) in order to make the environment more predictable and to build appropriate sense-making frameworks (Cooper-Thomas & Anderson, 2006; Louis, 1980). In the prison context, the socialization process is especially critical for newcomers. First, this context is a professional environment closed to the outside world and characterized by strict privacy and security