Police Employee Data: Elements and Validity

• Published date: 01 December 2002
• Date: 01 December 2002
• Author: William R. King,Craig D. Uchida
• DOI: 10.3818/JRP.4.1.2002.11
• Subject Matter: Article

Police Employee Data: Elements and Validity • 11

*Police Employee Data:

Elements and Validity

Craig D. Uchida

21st Century Solutions, Inc.

William R. King

Bowling Green State University

JUSTICE RESEARCH AND POLICY, Vol. 4, Special Issue, Fall 2002

© 2002 Justice Research and Statistics Association

This article is based on a paper prepared for the National Research Council, Division of

Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education, Committee on Law and Justice, Meeting

of the Committee to Review Research on Police Policy and Practices, Washington, DC,

April 11, 2002.

*Abstract

The Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) Uniform Crime Reports (UCR) Police

Employee data, collected from U.S. police agencies annually since 1930, provide

information on various aspects of police organizations (such as the number of em-

ployees and assaults on officers). Such data, spanning 72 years, offer researchers a

potentially rich data set. This article provides a brief history of the Police Employee

data, describes the various data elements, and tentatively addresses the validity and

reliability of these data. Finally, suggested improvements (as well as possible uses)

for these data are offered.