Theory and Practice Paper
Madolyn D. Engle
PBJ 301: Organizational Structure and Communication
Professor Rivera-Vasquez
June 25, 2018
APA Format
Abstract
This paper discusses my personal experiences during site observations with the Oswego City Police Department and Oswego City Fire Department. First, I outlined the events I observed, from regular operations to some conversations that I observed. Secondly, I discussed theories I observed being actively practiced by the organizations. Specifically, the theories I observed were the Open systems theory, the Closed Systems theory, the Communications Theory and Achievement-Power-Affiliation Theory. These theories make it possible for each agency to function properly and provide effective service to the surrounding community. I also examine some unethical behavior seen at the Oswego Police Department.
Observing Oswego City Police and Fire Department
Internships and on-site observations are great ways to look into the daily functions of an organization to see what the members of those organizations really do. Generally speaking, the public has a basic knowledge of how their community police organization operates. They see their community police actively involved in traffic stops, accident scenes, seeking missing items and persons, and sometimes participating in awareness and charity events. The public also has some basic knowledge of the fire departments activities when they see them driving to calls, helping at traffic accidents, or putting out fires. However, what the public does not see, are all of the facets that work together within an agency that help to facilitate a successful and professional working environment. When applied to the Oswego City Police Department and Oswego City Fire Department, these facets include their personnel with their own chain of command, unique to fit their environment. I believe that on-site observations are critical to a student’s understanding of a law enforcement and public safety agency’s daily operations.
For my first site observation, I used the Oswego City Police Department. I signed a liability waiver and I was placed with an officer that I have known for a long time, Sergeant Thomas Rupert. The time of the observation spanned from 3:00pm, or 1500, until 5:00pm, or 1700 on a Thursday. First we just walked around downtown Oswego, talking to some of the members of the community. I thought this was a very good example of community policing.
A little after we finished walking around, we received a call to the Oswego Hospital for a psychiatric patient who refused to come back inside. Upon arrival, we found no such patient outside. We then went inside the Emergency Department and found the patient sitting inside, in their room. What had happened, according to the charge nurse, was that the patient wanted to go outside for a cigarette. Oswego Hospital policy is that every patient must remain inside the department at all times until discharged. The patient decided to run outside and smoke despite the policy and rules. Oswego Hospital’s other policy is to call 911 if a psychiatric patient leaves the premises for any reason. Long story short, we were not needed because after the patient had their cigarette, they came back inside and cooperated.
After we cleared this call, we decided to go check on a person who the sergeant was dealing with prior to my arrival. This offender was on probation for breaking and entering, as well as drug possession and intent to sell. We were called there to check on another officer who went there to give him a citation for breaking probation, according to his ankle tracker. After talking to the offender for a few minutes, everything was resolved and our work was done. The rest of the observation was fairly laid back. We did some community policing and then hung out at the station until my shift was up.
The second observation I participated in was at the Oswego City Fire Department. Due to their own set guidelines for interns, I was unfortunately unable to go to calls, however I was able to ask them questions and observe what it is like when they are not on calls. The hours I spent there started from 6:00pm, or 1800, to about 8:00pm, or 2000 on a Thursday. I followed Firefighter/AEMT-Paramedic Lenny Hartle. He was able to introduce me to the Chief, Assistant Chief, and some of the Deputy Chiefs of the agency. I asked and observed each member for the duration of the observation in between calls they took.
Theories Observed in Practice
While I was riding along with Oswego Police and Oswego Fire, I observed theories in practice, such as elements from the Open Systems Theory, Communication Theory, and Achievement-Power-Affiliation Theory. The Open systems theory is “an approach to understanding organizations as being influenced by their environments” (Stojkovic, Kalinich and Klofas, 2015, p. 13). Some of the Open System elements that Oswego City Police displays are in coordination with Oswego Hospital Emergency Department. Both agencies need to be prepared for changing environments from changing weather patterns to aggressive offenders.
From my observation above, the hospital had to be prepared for this psychiatric patient to change their mind at any given time. The police officers also have to be prepared for offenders to become aggressive at the drop of a hat. The sergeant I was riding with was discussing with me that I had to remain in the car if he deemed the situation to be serious and would endanger me. The second call we went on is a perfect example of Open systems theory. The offender was very hostile and kept running into their house. The officer was concerned for my safety and was prepared to use his taser on the offender, if the situation called for it.
Another theory I witnessed while on my site observation was the communication theory. The communication theory is defined as the process by which people interactively create, sustain, and manage meaning (Dainton & Zelley, 2014). While I was doing my site observation with the Oswego Police, I witnessed one of the officer’s start and carry on a conversation with his superior. The officer first began with "Sergeant, Do you have a minute to discuss this case?" The Sergeant then continued the conversation by asking what the problem was. The officer was professional while talking to his Sergeant. I say this because he stood tall and did not slouch, he looked him in the eye while talking/listening, and he also kept referring to his Sergeant as "Sir". By the end of the conversation, it seemed like the officer understood what he had to do for his case and the Sergeant told him, that if he needed anything else, to come back and talk to him some more. I figured this was the communication theory at work because the two parties in the conversation carried out good communication and professionalism.
While observing at the Oswego Fire Department, I also witnessed numerous conversations like the one above. The communication theory process also involves the use of a chain of command. According to Stojkovic, Klofas, & Kalinich (2015), a chain of command provides a clear set of paths for its members. At the fire department, despite knowing each other’s first names, they all refer to each other by their ranking. For example, one of the deputies started a conversation with their chief. They always referred to him as Chief and kept a profession conversation despite being close friends outside of the department.
Another theory used within the Oswego Fire Department is the Achievement-Power-Affiliation theory. The Achievement-Power-Affiliation theory is a need theory and suggests that people who seek success through their own efforts, work on challenging projects, and receive feedback have high achievement values (Stojkovic, Klofas, & Kalinich, 2015). From my observations at the Oswego City Fire Department, I have asked many members what their motivations are for this job. All of the members I asked had the same answer. They all had intrinsic motivations. According to Sumi Jha (2010), all motivational needs, such as achievement, power, and affiliation, are positively correlated to intrinsic motivation. These members wanted to do nothing more than help out their community and knowing that they did something to help another, or make their day easier, is all they need to feel that they achieved success.
Additional Findings
While I was on my observation at the Oswego Police Department, I witnessed something I found to be unethical. While sitting at the station, an officer came in to talk to his Sergeant about a case he was working. The officer was working on a theft that occurred at one of the local businesses. What he was trying to do was charge the offender with multiple different offenses, some of which were false and had nothing to do with the case. After talking to his Sergeant, he finally realized that it was wrong to charge this offender with things that didn’t quite fit the situation. In the textbook Criminal Justice Internships- Theory Into Practice (2015, p. 97) by McBride, it is explained that student interns and observers will likely see some form of unethical behavior while completing their internships.
The text also cites an article, Criminal Justice Interns’ Observations of Misconduct: An Exploratory Study (2007) by Jordan, Burns, Bedard and Barringer. The above article states that many students observed “illegal behavior, violation of legal procedures, violation of departmental policy, disrespect (lack of courtesy), unprofessional behavior towards citizens, unprofessional comments or behavior in a private setting, biased investigation or enforcement activity, and officers telling you not to pass on something you heard or observed” (Jordan et al., 2007, p.303). As an observer, I was taken back by his behavior but glad that his superior led him on the right path and changed his behavior before it was set in his mind.
Conclusion
The theories in practice within an organization directly affect the quality of care and service they can provide to their surrounding community. The Oswego City Police have proven to be an effective law enforcement agency, with Open System and communication aspects. This has also proven that the Oswego City Fire Department is an effective public safety agency as well. Along the open systems theory, the communication theory and achievement-power-affiliation theory also allow these departments function properly and provide effective service. These multi-disciplinary approaches to recognizing the positives of an organization’s components are the key to addressing its efficiencies.
References
Dainton, M., & Zelley, E. (2014). Introduction to Communication Theory. In Applying Communication Theory to Professional Life (3rd ed., pp. 1-11). SAGE Publications.
Jha, S. (2010). Need for Growth, Achievement, Power and Affiliation. Global Business Review, 11(3), 379-393. doi:10.1177/097215091001100305
Jordan, W. T., Burns, R. G., Bedard, L. E., & Barringer, T. A. (2007). Criminal justice interns’ observations of misconduct: an exploratory study. Journal of Criminal Justice Education, 18(2), 298-310. doi:10.1080/10511250701383434
McBride, R. B. (2015). Criminal Justice Internships: Theory Into Practice (Eighth ed.). New York, NY: Routledge
Stojkovic, S., Klofas, J., & Kalinich, D. (2015). Criminal Justice Organizations: Administration and Management (Sixth ed.). Stamford, CT: Cengage Learning.