SOCIOLOGY RESEARCH WORKSHOP

There will be a sociology research workshop on Dr. Bustamante's project titled "Dialog and Disorder Keeping: Police Organizational Sensemaking of Problems in Oakland, California and Stockholm Sweden." This project is a comparative ethnography that draws on the concept of organizational sensemaking to analyze how police officers develop collective understandings and emotions in response to local problems. The event will take place on December 13th from 1 - 2:30 pm in Phillips 411. The research presentation will be followed by a discussion (10-20 minutes) and then open discussion (30 minutes). 

While prevailing theory of police culture underscore the role of occupational and situational variables (denoted as strain) in shaping this phenomenon, it does not account for the collective and imperfect ways members of police organizations develop shared understandings that influence officer actions. Drawing on sensemaking analysis, the present study points to the importance of organizational logics (i.e. organizational structures and resources) shaping sensemaking within police agencies. This assertion is based upon comparative ethnographic research focused on the policing of local problems in Oakland, California and Stockholm, Sweden. The findings from this study signal the significance of police culture in producing (rather than only responding to) organizational efficacy, breakdowns, and strain. More broadly, this work sheds light on the role of organizational culture and emotion in mediating organizational learning in the aftermath of challenges and failure events.