Natural born violence? Understanding street‐level bureaucrats' use of violence: Police officers and protests

• Published date: 01 January 2024
• Author: Rafael Alcadipani,Gabriela Lotta,Nissim Cohen
• Date: 01 January 2024
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1111/puar.13670

SCHOLARLY TAKES

Natural born violence? Understanding street-level

bureaucrats’use of violence: Police officers and protests

Rafael Alcadipani

1

| Gabriela Lotta

1

| Nissim Cohen

2

1

FGV-EAESP (Brazil), Bela Vista, S˜

ao Paulo, Brazil

2

Department of Public Administration and

Policy, School of Political Sciences, The

University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel

Correspondence

Rafael Alcadipani, FGV-EAESP (Brazil), Rua

Itapeva, 432 - 11o andar, Bela Vista, S˜

ao Paulo,

SP 01332-000, Brazil

Email: rafael.alcadipani@fgv.br

Abstract

What factors influence street-level bureaucrats’(SLBs) use of violence? To answer this

question, we focus on police officers, a typical example of SLBs, who can lawfully use

violence whenever they deem it necessary. Based on ethnographic work among

Brazilian police officers dealing with protests, we analyze how violence erupts in the

interaction between police officers and protesters. We contribute to the literature by

suggesting that no single factor alone can explain the actions of SLBs regarding the

use of violence, as previous research has posited. We demonstrate how the interplay

between four factors explains the use of violence by SLBs: (1) institutional logic,

(2) type of situation, (3) desire for revenge and having fun, and (4) lack of account-

ability. As such, we propose a more complex account of SLB’s use of violence.

Evidence for practice

•We highlight the importance of developing less violent institutional logic, espe-

cially among police officers. Public organizations should invest in training and

socialization that reject violence as a legitimate reaction to any situation

•We demonstrate the importance of accountability to limit and prevent the use

of violence at the street level. Holding SLBs and individuals accountable for their

use of violence should help reduce it

•The findings indicate the importance of managers’training and sensitizing their

teams about how SLBs should deal with different types of citizens. Managers

should teach them not to judge and evaluate them based on stereotypes. Train-

ing should involve learning certain techniques other than violence to deal with

provocative situations

INTRODUCTION

Encounters between street-level bureaucrats (SLBs) and

citizens are often full of tension (Lipsky, 2010). Such situa-

tions, characterized by their lack of predictability, strong

demands, and lack of information and resources, might

become ticking time bombs (Davidovitz & Cohen, 2022;

Tummers, Bekkers, & Steijn, 2012). Many scholars have

noted the existence of violence in organizations (Costas &

Grey, 2019) and at the street level (Davidovitz &

Cohen, 2022; Lotta, Lima-Silva, & Favareto, 2021;Maynard-

Moody & Musheno, 2003; Nguyen & Velayutham, 2018).

The literature also shows that SLBs may become violent

when moving against certain “clients”

1

(Tummers, Bekkers,

Vink, & Musheno, 2015) or facing risky and threatening situ-

ations (Alpes & Spire, 2014). What remains to be explained

is under what circumstances SLBs (e.g., parking inspectors,

forest guards, or prison guards) decide to use violence

against citizens.

Police officers are a typical example of SLBs (Morrell &

Currie, 2015). They are the frontline enforcers of state laws

(Cohen & Golan-Nadir, 2020). Like other SLBs, they have

to make quick decisions in very unpredictable situations

(Raaphorst & Van de Walle, 2017). However, police officers

are more likely to encounter violence than other types of

SLBs, as their daily work involves dealing with risky situa-

tions, conflict, and threats (Cohen & Cohen, 2023).

While SLBs often deliver services and benefits, police

officers may also need to inflict punishment using vio-

lence (Epp, Maynard-Moody, & Haider-Markel, 2017).

Police officers can lawfully use violence against citizens

when they deem it necessary (Morrell & Currie, 2015), and

the decision to use violence is at their discretion, just as

other SLBs. Some studies have recently identified some

Received: 3 January 2022 Revised: 3 May 2023 Accepted: 9 May 2023

DOI: 10.1111/puar.13670

100 © 2023 American Society for Public Administration. Public Admin Rev. 2024;84:100–114.wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/puar