Policing Strategies Adopted by Officers Working in Isolated Communities

The research in the source article identified several distinct policing challenges in isolated communities, including problematic social issues and crime rates, strained community-police relations, harassment from the community, and excessive workload. Officers in isolated communities were found to rely on several unconventional policing methods compared to their counterparts in non-isolated communities and to emphasize problem-solving and adaptability to address the distinct challenges they encounter. The results of this research suggest an increased need for: (1) collaboration between community members, police professionals, and academic researchers to address policing challenges in isolated communities, (2) the recruitment of officers for isolated communities with greater flexibility in their policing style and an interest in non-enforcement related work, and (3) training that emphasizes the importance of community involvement for policing in isolated communities and imparts knowledge about the nature of policing in those communities.