Deck 10: Ethics and Decision-Making

Question 1

At what levels of policing does the process of discretion occur?

A) only by officers working patrol
B) only by superior officers
C) at all levels of policing
D) only by detectives

Answer 1

C

Question 2

Which of the following is true of police discretionary power?

A) It is a normal, desirable, and unavoidable part of policing.
B) The existence of clear rules and laws makes discretion unnecessary, but police don't want to give up the power.
C) It is defined as the exercise of group choice or judgment concerning possible courses of action.
D) It is hardly ever used in policing.

Answer 2

A

Question 3

To perform their role competently and effectively, the police must maintain a high degree of ______.

A) negative public opinion
B) discretionary authority
C) mixed emotions
D) legitimacy

Answer 3

B

Question 4

Police officers are not ______, but they must and do perform the functions of both on certain occasions.

A) protagonist and antagonist
B) chief and city council
C) judge and jury
D) both "good cop" and "bad cop"

Question 5

______ refers to the exercise of individual choice or judgment concerning possible courses of action.

A) Quotas
B) Biased enforcement
C) Ethics
D) Police discretion

Question 6

It is important that the police do or have all of the following EXCEPT for ______.

A) a sense of autonomy
B) common sense
C) biased enforcement
D) interpret the law

Question 7

Which of the following statements is NOT true regarding discretion?

A) Discretion is required.
B) Police resources are unlimited.
C) Policing consists of a number of specializations.
D) Police are well aware that the other components of the criminal justice network also have limited capacities.

Question 8

Besides the subculture, all of the following are considerations that influence an officer's discretion EXCEPT for ______.

A) situations
B) department policy
C) political pressure
D) officer burnout and stress

Question 9

According to the text, which of the following besides education, training, and length of service of the officer has been shown to influence an officer's decision on how a case will be handled?

A) the attitude of the suspect
B) wishes of the complainant
C) mood of the officer
D) what the highest-ranking officer on shift would want done

Question 10

All of the following are factors that influence police discretion EXCEPT for ______.

A) situation, setting, and suspect
B) departmental policy and culture
C) the law
D) race, gender, and age

Question 11

Police officers who render service or enforce the law based solely on ______ are exercising discretion inappropriately.

A) physical appearance
B) criminal history
C) crime committed
D) eyewitnesses

Question 12

An agency's leadership and supervision, as well as organizational norms and culture, can lead them to do all of the following EXCEPT for ______.

A) resort to threats
B) exercise restraint and tolerance
C) ignore rules and policies
D) not do their job as a police officer

Question 13

By default, police officers also technically answer to all of the following EXCEPT for ______.

A) mayors
B) commissioners
C) lawmakers
D) educators

Question 14

Adhering to a supervisor's policy of not ticketing unless an individual has exceeded the speed limit by more than 10 miles an hour is an example of the influence of ______.

A) law
B) department policy and culture
C) political and economic pressures
D) situation, setting, and suspect

Question 15

All of the following are potential outcomes regarding the misuse of discretion EXCEPT for ______.

A) civil liability issues
B) poor morale
C) reduction in instances of loss of life
D) public distrust of the police

Question 16

All of the following statements are true concerning the challenges of discretion EXCEPT for ______.

A) police must be role models on and off the job
B) biased enforcement is always necessary
C) distrust can lead to public mistrust of the police
D) discretion is necessary but not easy

Question 17

______ are arbitrary and fixed numbers of citations or stops (or some other measure of activity) that officers are required to meet on a periodic basis.

A) Warrants
B) Quotas
C) Reports
D) Citations

Question 18

Which of the following statements is NOT true of quotas?

A) They are a type of biased enforcement.
B) They are unethical and illegal.
C) They undermine healthy discretion.
D) They promote a positive department culture.

Question 19

Which of the following has been used as a justification for quotas?

A) They improve collegiality among officers.
B) They ensure productivity.
C) They show that the police department cares about safety.
D) They bring in extra revenue.

Question 20

Using quotas as an agency is considered to be ______.

A) community policing
B) problem-oriented policing
C) numbers-based policing
D) evidence-based policing

Question 21

______ is referred to as the study of right and wrong, duty, responsibility, and personal character.

A) Ethics
B) Discretion
C) Profiling
D) Nonfeasance

Question 22

______ is the most important guide for officers as they make decisions.

A) Political ideology
B) Ethics
C) Education
D) Department culture

Question 23

The introduction of ______ is an example of an organizational transformation that relates to ethical decision-making on the part of officers.

A) problem-oriented policing
B) community-oriented policing
C) numbers-based policing
D) evidence-based policing

Question 24

Which of the following was identified as being a step further from community-oriented policing?

A) problem-oriented policing
B) intelligence-led policing
C) numbers-based policing
D) evidence-based policing

Question 25

All of the following were identified as measures that could help emphasize ethics EXCEPT for ______.

A) requiring ongoing in-service training
B) psychological testing
C) background investigations
D) physical exams

Question 26

Which of the following could thwart good intentions?

A) peer pressure
B) strong administration
C) knowledge of policies and procedures
D) professional department culture

Question 27

Which of the following was NOT proposed as a way to stimulate discussions of ethics?

A) video clips
B) current events
C) hypothetical scenarios
D) lectures

Question 28

The Knapp Commission focused on police officers in which city?

A) New York
B) Miami
C) Chicago
D) Los Angeles

Question 29

Grass eaters are police officers who ______.

A) abide by ethics standards
B) are extremely corrupt
C) engage in minor acts of corruption
D) exemplify the title of public servant

Question 30

The reluctance to report wrongdoing is referred to as ______.

A) intolerance
B) ratting out
C) nonfeasance
D) grass eating

Question 31

Which of the following was NOT identified by the IACP as a factor that can negatively influence police ethics?

A) changing moral standards of contemporary society
B) the high degree of frustration experience by officers
C) agencies that fail to draw legal, ethical, and moral lines
D) decreasing the number of individuals who reject responsibility

Question 32

A true leader's conduct is appraised in all of the following frames of reference EXCEPT for ______.

A) what it actually is
B) what he or she thinks it is
C) what it appears to be to others
D) what others think

Question 33

The Knapp Commission committee was formed in ______.

A) 1970
B) 1972
C) 1974
D) 1976

Question 34

Police practices that result from enforcement of the law based on personal and occupational characteristics are called ______.

A) prejudicial patrolling
B) biased enforcement
C) unfair watch
D) dangerous liaisons

Question 35

Which of the following would be considered racial profiling by the police or members of law enforcement?

A) detaining an individual whose physical characteristics and clothing match that of a described suspect
B) pulling over an individual whose physical characteristics do not "fit" the surrounding area
C) questioning an individual walking on a public sidewalk at night who appears inebriated
D) pulling over a female during the daytime who is using her cell phone while driving in violation of a city ordinance

Question 36

______ occurs when an officer considers race as part of a decision to take, or not to take, law enforcement action.

A) Prejudicial patrolling
B) Racial profiling
C) Unfair watch
D) Dangerous liaisons

Question 37

Studies have found that ______ are more likely to experience nonweapon force than certain other groups.

A) Black and Hispanic citizens
B) Hispanic and White citizens
C) Black and Asian citizens
D) Asian and Middle Eastern citizens

Question 38

Failure to recognize and communicate the importance of ______ at all levels in policing may lead to a pretense of full enforcement and equal treatment in similar conditions, when the reality is selective enforcement and unequal treatment.

A) equality
B) honesty
C) discretion
D) inequality

Question 39

Once we admit that ______ exist(s) in police work, we can talk about its proper and improper uses.

A) perceptions
B) bias
C) hierarchies
D) discretion

Question 40

A better way to approach the control of discretion may involve the use of ______ to promote voluntary compliance with policies concerning discretion.

A) surveys
B) polls
C) written reprimands
D) incentives

Question 41

All policies governing individual and collective police behavior should be consistent with ______.

A) other agencies of equal size
B) the bylaws of the unions
C) the requests of the prosecutors
D) the ideals of justice and morality

Question 42

Which of the following is NOT a recommendation for law enforcement executives to instill ethical behavior in officers in their department?

A) implementing zero tolerance policies for unethical behavior
B) incorporating the ideals of ethics and integrity into the organization's mission statement
C) making ethical decision-making part of the department's policies
D) utilizing citizen input as a component of departmental ethical guideline creation

Question 43

The most effective officers grasp the ______ context in which they operate.

A) social and historical
B) historical and economic
C) economic and political
D) social and political

Question 44

In a Gallup poll on honesty/ethics in professions, ______ respondents rated police honesty and ethical standards as high or very high.

A) 17%
B) 31%
C) 56%
D) 72%

Question 45

Which of the following has contributed to the problematic relationship between the police and the media?

A) social media
B) television media
C) print media
D) radio media

Question 46

A report by the National Institute of Justice (2005) offered recommendations for encouraging officers to come forward to report acts of misconduct by their coworkers. Which of the following is one of the recommendations?

A) making it clear that those who do not report misconduct will be disciplined
B) making it public in the newspaper if any department member is caught lying during an internal investigation
C) not allowing for anonymous or confidential reporting
D) issuing penalties to those who delay their reporting beyond 2 hours

Question 47

______ is the practice of targeting minority group members for traffic or other law enforcement practices.

A) Racial favoritism
B) Racial preferential treatment
C) Racial profiling
D) Duck, duck, goose

Question 48

Which of the following is NOT considered to be an underlying tenet of the oath police officers take when they enter the field?

A) honesty
B) integrity
C) responsibility
D) personal achievement

Question 49

______ has/have weakened the trust between the public and police.

A) Social media
B) Racial profiling
C) Nonfeasance
D) Quotas

Question 50

Unethical practices by some police officers continue because of ______.

A) strict accountability
B) effective supervisory practices
C) strong leadership structures
D) police subculture

Question 51

It is appropriate to consider discretion and ethics together, because they are closely interrelated.

Question 52

Professional ethics outline the moral obligation to act in ways that are proper to accomplish professional goals.

Question 53

The criminal law is written in a fashion that makes interpretation unnecessary on the part of police officers.

Question 54

The exercise of discretion is routine in all police agencies.

Question 55

It is not necessary to maintain a high degree of discretionary authority for police officers to perform their roles competently and effectively.

Question 56

Discretion is a normal, desirable, and unavoidable part of policing that exists at all levels within a police agency and at all levels of policing.

Question 57

Officers must take into account extenuating and mitigating circumstances in only a few select instances in interactions with the public as part of exercising discretion in enforcing the law.

Question 58

How discretion is used may vary between shifts of officers within the same police department.

Question 59

Education and training do not impact an officer's decisions.

Question 60

If an officer cannot determine in a domestic dispute who is the most culpable individual, both parties may be placed under arrest.

Question 61

If in a traffic stop an officer gives a warning to a driver who was speeding on his way to work as a law enforcement officer in another jurisdiction, this is an example of the use of discretion.

Question 62

Leadership and supervision do not have an impact on a police officer's decision to exercise discretion.

Question 63

One advantage of limiting police discretion is greater consistency in terms of how and when police officers enforce a given statute.

Question 64

A police officer is expected to be a role model regardless of whether he or she is on the clock.

Question 65

Quotas are a type of biased enforcement.

Question 66

Although unethical, quotas are not illegal.

Question 67

Some view quotas as a way to ensure productivity from officers.

Question 68

Rating officers on how many tickets they write and how many arrests they make each month has a direct effect on biased enforcement practices.

Question 69

The most important guide for officers as they make their decisions is ethics.

Question 70

Ethics is the study of right and wrong, duty, responsibility, and moral character.

Question 71

Research has demonstrated that ethics education can assist officers in better navigating moral challenges by increasing ethical awareness and moral reasoning.

Question 72

Ethics education is effective only when taught via lecture.

Question 73

The authors of the textbook do not believe that the majority of police officers in the United States perform their duties honestly, ethically, and professionally.

Question 74

More than 30 years ago, the Knapp Commission discovered that the majority of New York City police officers were aggressively seeking out opportunities to engage in unethical conduct.

Question 75

Changing moral standards for contemporary society can negatively influence police ethics.

Question 76

A meat eater refers to officers who engage in minor acts of corrupt practice.

Question 77

Racial profiling is not a component of biased enforcement.

Question 78

Legally, an officer can consider race only as part of a specific, reliable suspect description tied to a particular crime.

Question 79

Considering race a factor among many is not considered racial profiling.

Question 80

It is possible to treat everyone exactly the same.