Multi-Method Study of Police Special Weapons and Tactics Teams in the United States, 1986-1998
Description
This research study was designed to pursue three specific
goals to accomplish its objective of enhancing knowledge about Special
Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) teams and the role they play in
contemporary American policing. The first goal was to develop a better
picture of the structure and nature of SWAT teams in American law
enforcement. The second goal of the research project was to increase
the amount of knowledge about how SWAT teams prepare for and execute
operations. The project's third goal was to develop information about
one specific aspect of SWAT operations: the use of force, especially
deadly force, by both officers and suspects. To gather this
information, the SWAT Operations Survey (SOS) was conducted. This was a
nationwide survey of law enforcement agencies with 50 or more sworn
officers. The survey sought information about the agencies' emergency
response capabilities and structures. The SOS included two
instruments: (1) the Operations Form, completed by a total of 341
agencies, and containing variables about the organization and
functioning of SWAT teams, and (2) the Firearms Discharge Report,
which includes a total of 273 shootings of interest, as well as items
about incidents in which SWAT officers and suspects discharged
firearms during SWAT operations.
Resources
| Name |
Format |
Description |
Link |
|
0 |
ICPSR20351.v1 |
https://doi.org/10.3886/ICPSR20351.v1 |
Tags
- police-effectiveness
- police-performance
- law-enforcement-agencies
- police-training
- police-use-of-deadly-force
- organizational-structure
- police-use-of-force
- police-response
- crisis-intervention