Criminal Justice Organizations: Administration and Management

1. Chapter 12 - Decision Making

2. Criminal Justice Organizations: Administration and Management Chapter Twelve Decision Making Chapter 12 - Decision Making

3. Learning Objectives 341 • Be able to define decision making • Understand the basis for decision making rules of criminal justice practitioners • Understand the garbage can theory of decision making • Be able to briefly discuss the four types of criminal justice decision makers • Understand the major themes to improving criminal justice decisions Chapter 12 - Decision Making

4. Police Typologies James Q. Wilson (1968) styles of policing many be seen as frameworks within which police officers make decisions to arrest or not arrest. 1. Watchman Style • Goal is to maintain order • Considerable use of discretion 2. Legalistic Style • Enforce the letter of the law • Avoid involvement in community disputes 3. Service Style • Concerned with the needs of the community • Police work closely with social services and other community groups Chapter 12 - Decision Making

5. What Is a Decision? 347 • A decision is a judgment, a choice between alternatives (Houston, 1999). • Decisions are often made within the context of a theory or broad framework (paradigm). • Three kinds of information • Anawareness of the alternatives • Anawareness of the possible consequences of each alternative • Some information is needed about thesubject of the decision in order to guide the selection among the alternatives. Chapter 12 - Decision Making

6. What Is a Decision? 347 • The availability of the information does not necessarily produce a decision. • The information must be processed. • Processing occurs through the decision rules, which govern how the elements of the decision are combined. Chapter 12 - Decision Making

7. What Is a Decision? 347 • Decisionrulesgovern how the elements of the decision are combined. • In criminal justice many decisions are clinical (devoid of emotion) and based on the decision makers education, training, and experience. • All decisions should be based on goals or preferred outcomes. • Feedback provides the opportunity to correct previously made decisions. Chapter 12 - Decision Making

8. What Is a Decision? 347 • Arrest decision, sentencing decisions, and classification decisions usually rely on the clinical judgments of individuals. • At the other extreme are quantitative decision rules, involving the assignment of numerical weights to pieces of information. • Weighting produces a sum that dictates the decision. • Scales based on these principles have been developed for use in prosecution, bail sentencing, and parole. Chapter 12 - Decision Making

9. What Is a Decision? 347 • In a cybernetic, or self-correcting, decision model the outcome of prior decisions provides feedback to influence future decisions through its influence on: 1. Theory 2. Decision rules 3. Information Chapter 12 - Decision Making

10. What is a Decision? Chapter 12 - Decision Making

11. Decision Making TheoryRationality to Garbage Cans 348 • Initially, decision making was thought to be a rational process. • Later, March and Simon (1958) proposed that decisions are based on bounded rationality • Decision makers are unable to collect all the information they need to make a completely rational decision. • The result is satisfycing – taking the first acceptable solution that comes along. • “Garbage can” analogy – decision makers keep previously made decisions and use them as needed. Chapter 12 - Decision Making

12. Decision Making TheoryOrganizational Culture 352 • Decisions are often influenced by the organizational culture. • “We’ve always done it that way.” • “It worked in the past.” • “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” • Organizations tend to define problems and identify solutions to problems based on deeply rooted values and beliefs. Chapter 12 - Decision Making

13. Decision Making TheoryPolitics 354 • Politics is power and power influences decision making. • Internal politics – processes by which interested parties within the organization express their concern and seek implementation and acceptance of their ideas and practices. • External politics – consist of the influence that outside parties exert on the organization’s definition of mission, the appropriate types of operations the organization exhibits, and the directions it takes. Chapter 12 - Decision Making

14. Characteristics of Decision Makers 357 • Sequentialists – use their experience to determine what items of information are the most important to the decision. They arrange items in a sequential order before they make a decision. • Ah yes!– collect large amounts of information and search for patterns in that information. • Simplifier– reduces complex problems to their simplest form. • Ratifier – wait for comments by someone else and then associate themselves with that person’s viewpoint. Chapter 12 - Decision Making

15. Decision Making Styles 358 • Directive – make decisions and announce them. They are highly task oriented and have a low tolerance for ambiguity. • Analytical– high tolerance for ambiguity and tend to overanalyze situations. • Conceptual – work well with people and rely on discussion with others to consider the problem and possible solutions. • Behavioral– like to interact with others and welcome open discussions. Tend to avoid conflict. Chapter 12 - Decision Making

16. Decision Making Styles • Decision making styles can also range on a continuum from • Autocratic – boss makes and announces the decision, to • Laissez-faire– totally subordinate centered. • Some decision makers are democratic or participative and encourage input from subordinates. • Police chiefs tend to: • Be autocratic, • Be directive, and • Rely on traditional beliefs and assumptions Chapter 12 - Decision Making

17. Three Basic Models of Leadership Style • Autocratic/Authoritarian • Democratic/Participative • Delegative/Laissez-Faire Chapter 12 - Decision Making

18. AUTOCRATIC/ AUTHORITARIAN • Tells employees/students what they want done and how to do it (without getting the advice from others). • Works well if you don’t have much time to accomplish goals or if employees are well motivated. • Generally, this style is not a good way to get the best performance from a team. Chapter 12 - Decision Making

19. AUTOCRATIC/ AUTHORITARIAN • Sets goals individually • Engages primarily in one-way, downward communication • Controls discussions of followers • Sets policy and procedures unilaterally • Dominates interaction • Personally directs the completion of tasks • Provides infrequent positive feedback • Rewards obedience and punishes mistakes • Exhibits poor listening skills • Uses conflict for personal gain Chapter 12 - Decision Making

20. DEMOCRATIC/PARTICIPATIVE • The leader involves one or more employees/students in the decision making process (to determine what to do and how to do it). • Leader maintains the final decision making authority. • Allows everyone to be part of a team—everyone feels that they have participated and contributed. • Encourages participation, delegates wisely, values group discussion. • Motivates by empowering members to direct themselves and guides w/a loose reign. • Negative—everything is a matter of group discussion and decision—doesn’t really lead. Chapter 12 - Decision Making

21. DEMOCRATIC/PARTICIPATIVE • Involves followers in setting goals • Engages in two-way, open communication • Facilitates discussion with followers • Solicits input regarding determination of policy and procedures • Focuses interaction • Provides suggestions and alternatives for the completion of tasks • Provides frequent positive feedback • Rewards good work and uses punishment only as a last resort • Exhibits effective listening skills • Mediates conflict for group gain Chapter 12 - Decision Making

22. DELEGATIVE/LAISSEZ-FAIR aka Free Reign • Leader allows employees/students to make the decisions. • Leader is still responsible for the decisions. • Employees/students analyze the situation and determine what needs to be done and how to do it. Leader sets priorities and delegates. • Leader has little control. Team has little direction or motivation. Chapter 12 - Decision Making

23. DELEGATIVE/LAISSEZ-FAIR • Allows followers free rein to set their own goals • Engages in noncommittal, superficial communication • Avoids discussion with followers to set policy and procedures • Avoids interaction • Provides suggestions and alternatives for the completion of tasks only when asked to do so by followers • Provides infrequent feedback of any kind • Avoids offering rewards or punishments • May exhibit either poor or effective listening skills • Avoids conflict Chapter 12 - Decision Making

24. Characteristics of Information 360 • Accuracy– most important, but often least attainable because information is; • Complied from numerous sources, • From people with a vested interest in the outcome, and • Often only summarizes information about groups. • Order of presentation – affects sequentialist the most, but overall does affect the outcome of a decision. • Availability of alternatives – often there are only two possible outcomes. Additional alternatives complicate the process. Chapter 12 - Decision Making

25. Discretion • “a situation in which an official has latitude to make authoritative choices not necessarily specified within the source of authority which governs his decision making” (Atkins and Pogrebin (1992:1). • Often essential in criminal justice decision making. • Complicated nature of job • Incomplete information • Others argue that discretion is “uncontrolled decision making”. • Recent attempts have been made to objectify decision making through weighted questionnaires. Chapter 12 - Decision Making

26. Discretion Chapter 12 - Decision Making

27. Prediction • Prediction of the future influences criminal justice decision making. • The decision to arrest or not arrest • Criminal sentencing • Probation conditions • Recent applications of statistical techniques have improved this, but have not removed all unintended outcomes. Chapter 12 - Decision Making

28. Prediction Chapter 12 - Decision Making

29. Improving Criminal Justice Decisions • Themes for improving decision making • Equity– similar decisions for similar situations • Accuracy– making correct decisions • Consistency with theory– adhering to a consistent paradigm or framework • Consistency with resources – pragmatism • Contribution to future decisions – use prior decisions and their outcomes to influence future decisions Chapter 12 - Decision Making

30. Ethical Considerations • Decisions are often made under: • Time constraints, • During conflict, and • With personal bias. • Close and Meier (1995) pose four questions. • Will the decision violate Constitutional rights? • Does the decision treat individuals as mean? • Is the decision illegal? • Does the decision violate policy or a professional code of ethics? Chapter 12 - Decision Making

31. Decision-Making Process • Decision Making -- is the process of making choices by setting goals, gathering information, and assessing alternative occupations. Chapter 12 - Decision Making

32. Step 1: Identify The Decision To Be Made • You realize that a decision must be made. • You then go through an internal process of trying to define clearly the nature of the decision you must make. This first step is a very important one. Chapter 12 - Decision Making

33. Step 2: Gather Relevant Information • Most decisions require collecting pertinent information. • The real trick in this step is to know what information is needed, the best sources of this information, and how to go about getting it. • Some information must be sought from within yourself through a process of self-assessment; other information must be sought from outside yourself-from books, people, and a variety of other sources. • This step, therefore, involves both internal and external “work”. Chapter 12 - Decision Making

34. Step 3: Identify Alternatives • Through the process of collecting information you will probably identify several possible paths of action, or alternatives. • You may also use your imagination and information to construct new alternatives. • In this step of the decision-making process, you will list all possible and desirable alternatives. Chapter 12 - Decision Making

35. Step 4: Weigh Evidence • In this step, you draw on your information and emotions to imagine what it would be like if you carried out each of the alternatives to the end. • You must evaluate whether the need identified in Step 1 would be helped or solved through the use of each alternative. • In going through this difficult internal process, you begin to favor certain alternatives which appear to have higher potential for reaching your goal. • Eventually you are able to place the alternatives in priority order, based upon your own value system. Chapter 12 - Decision Making

36. Step 5: Choose Among Alternatives • Once you have weighed all the evidence, you are ready to select the alternative which seems to be best suited to you. • You may even choose a combination of alternatives. • Your choice in Step 5 may very likely be the same or similar to the alternative you placed at the top of your list at the end of Step 4. Chapter 12 - Decision Making

37. Step 7: Review Decision And Consequences • In the last step you experience the results of your decision and evaluate whether or not it has “solved” the need you identified in Step 1. • If it has, you may stay with this decision for some period of time. • If the decision has not resolved the identified need, you may repeat certain steps of the process in order to make a new decision. • You may, for example, gather more detailed or somewhat different information or discover additional alternatives on which to base your decision. Chapter 12 - Decision Making

38. Step 6: Take Action • You now take some positive action which begins to implement the alternative you chose in Step 5. Chapter 12 - Decision Making

39. Chapter Summary • A decision is based upon goals and is the process of making a choice between alternative paths toward the goal. • Information can exhibit the alternatives available. • The consequences of a decision can be estimated. • Decision rules are clinical in nature. • Decisions are influenced by the decision maker’s education, training, and experience. Chapter 12 - Decision Making

40. Chapter Summary • Decision makers keep a repertoire of solutions in a “garbage can” and pull the solutions out as when they encounter a problem. • There are four types of criminal justice decision makers. • Sequentalist – make decisions based on experience • Ah yes – search for patterns in large amount of information • Simplifier – reduces complex problems to simplest form • Ratifier – waits for comments and feedback from others Chapter 12 - Decision Making

41. Chapter Summary • The important themes in criminal justice decision making are: • Equity – similar dispositions across similar cases • Accuracy – separating the guilty from the innocent • Consistency – applying the same decision rules over time • Improved decision making should contribute to future decisions. Chapter 12 - Decision Making

42. Thinking Point and Question • Your department has just received $2,000,000 from an asset forfeiture fund. This money may be spent in any way the department chooses. • You call a meeting of the command staff to decide how this money should be spent. During the meeting your four supervisors make the following statements. • Classify these decision makers as either sequentialist, ah yes!, simplifier, or ratifier. Chapter 12 - Decision Making

43. Thinking Point and Question • “The last time we got one of these checks we used it to upgrade our radios. That was ten years ago. I think it is time we do that again.” • “Let’s ask the city manager, city council, mayor and maybe even have a town hall meeting before we decide.” • “Let’s just put it in the bank and wait for a rainy day.” • “Let’s look over our strategic plans for the past ten years and identify a need that we have not yet addressed.” Chapter 12 - Decision Making