Criminal Justice

Chapters 12 and 13 in our Mallicoat textbook address women working in the criminal justice field.

Chapter 12: This chapter begins by discussing how men have dominated much of the employment in the criminal justice system for many years. In addition, this chapter identifies challenges that many women face when working within the field of criminal justice. Finally, the chapter ends by explaining the future of women employed in the field of criminal justice.

Chapter 13: The purpose of this chapter is to discuss how gender can impact employment in the criminal justice profession. Also, this chapter highlights some of the job duty limitations placed upon women employed in the field of criminal justice. Lastly, the chapter explains how legislation created opportunities for women to be employed and treated fairly within the criminal justice profession.

For this essay, I ask that you compare and contrast two different countries. Find one country where there is a high percentage of women working in the criminal justice field and one country where there is a low percentage of women working in the criminal justice field.

Then answer the following questions;

1- Explain the relevant information about both countries.
2- Compare and contrast the similarities and differences between the two countries, relating to women working in the criminal justice system.
3- Does employing more women in the criminal justice system have a negative or positive effect?
4- Summarize your outcomes and conclusion.

ANSWER

Women’s Representation in the Criminal Justice System

Introduction

Men have continued to dominate the criminal justice system for the longest time. They are believed to possess advanced physical capabilities that offer them an advantage compared to women. However, when it comes to emotional management and interpersonal skills, women perform better than them. These are crucial skills needed in this industry, especially when engaging with others and making decisions. Women possess these skills and are better positioned to provide viable and sustainable community policing than men. This calls for authorities to establish policies that ensure different criminal justice systems employ more women. Focusing on employing more women in this industry will accelerate community policing. Thus, every law enforcement unit and department should target at employing as many female professionals as male ones to boosts their success and sustainability.

Overview of the Two Countries

The Netherlands is located in the Western Europe region. It has one of the highest rates of female representation in the criminal justice system, while Colombia has one of the lowest percentage rates. The law enforcement unit in the Netherlands is responsible for security and justice. Women for a critical segment of its workforce, with research showing that the Netherlands comes second as far as gender equality in the law enforcement domain is concerned (Van der Lippe, Graumans & Sevenhuijsen, 2004). This shows that women’s participation in this domain achieves the expected standards. Colombia is a nation located in South America and encompasses various units mandated to maintain law and order. It has one of the lowest percentages of female employees. This means that Colombia disregards the need to create equal opportunities for men and women in its criminal justice system.

Similarities and Differences

The key similarity between Netherlands and Colombia is that they incorporate women in the workforce to handle key tasks and responsibilities in the law enforcement industry. This portrays a move by these two countries to ensure that women are a participant in creating a safe and secure environment. Gender diversity is a key approach experienced in these two countries. However, they differ in line with the number of female workers in this industry and actions undertaken to accelerate the number. Compared to the Netherlands, Colombia has a reduced female representation. Statistics show that Colombia has approximately 8% of women police officers, while the Netherlands has about 33% (UNODC, 2021). These statistics show that Netherland is welcome to the idea of having more female workers in the criminal justice system. The other vital difference is that while the Netherlands adopts practices and strategies to expand this representation, Colombia remains with a lower percentage of female workers. For example, the Netherlands has introduced the gender quota strategy to boost equality (Van den Brink & Benschop, 2018). This is a major move towards advancing their representation.

Positive Effects of employing more Women in the Criminal Justice System

Employing women in the criminal justice system attracts numerous benefits. These include fewer excessive force cases, improved results, especially in the field, and advanced community policing at large. Women are associated with less usage of excessive force, and their increased representation across various institutions translates to a positive organizational image. For instance, if a police unit employs more women, it will have less cases of excessive force usage. Also, in the field, women are more likely to integrate viable communication approaches compared to men. They are better positioned to handle stress and other environmental outcomes linked to exposure to adverse situations. Also, women are attributed to advanced community policing. As Strobl (2020) reveals, women offer improved community policing because they have higher interpersonal communication skills, better stress management, and a positive influence on perceived job performance. These major benefits attract the need to have a higher representation of female officers in the law enforcement sector.

Research Outcomes

The analysis has shown that nations possess varied rates of female representation in their criminal justice systems. While some have taken the initiative to advance these numbers, others lag in gender equality perspectives. This leaves a significant gap towards the desire to ensure that the criminal justice system encompasses adequate representation of both men and women. Research has shown that the Netherlands performs well as far as a high female workforce is concerned while Colombia performs lower. Based on the improved policing outcomes that women relay, there is a dire need for all countries to ensure that they employ more women in this industry.

Conclusion

Women’s representation in the criminal justice system has failed to reach the desired milestones due to the attitude and perception that this is a male-dominated field. This makes institutions target a higher number of male officers than females. However, disregarding a higher number of female law enforcement means lower community policing because women possess valuable communication and emotional management skills. This has always based on the idea that this is a male-dominated industry. It is important to note that the success and sustainability of criminal justice systems lie in improved women’s representation. Therefore, countries should create and implement policies that push these institutions to employ more women. These policy structures and systems will push recruiters into selecting a large number of women in the criminal justice system.

References

Strobl, S. (2020). Towards a ‘Women-Oriented’Approach to Post-Conflict Policing: Interpreting National Experience (s) and Intergovernmental Aspirations. International Journal for Crime, Justice and Social Democracy, 9(1), 95.

UNODC (2021). Crime Prevention & Criminal Justice Module 9 Key Issues: Topic 4 – Gender diversity in the criminal justice workforce. Unodc.org. Retrieved 2 December 2021, from https://www.unodc.org/e4j/en/crime-prevention-criminal-justice/module-9/key-issues/4–gender-diversity-in-the-criminal-justice-workforce.html.

Van den Brink, M., & Benschop, Y. (2018). Gender interventions in the Dutch police force: resistance as a tool for change? Journal of Change Management, 18(3), 181-197. https://doi.org/10.1080/14697017.2017.1378695

Van der Lippe, T., Graumans, A., & Sevenhuijsen, S. (2004). Gender policies and the position of women in the police force in European countries. Journal of European social policy, 14(4), 391-405. https://doi.org/10.1177/0958928704046880