Administration OF Justice Chapter 11 PDF

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Chapter 11: Reporting and Information Management The “R” in LODESTAR and the “R” in POSDCORB both stand for “Reporting.” Today we also speak of this function as “Information Management.” The “reporting” functions of the criminal justice manager are critical. Reporting traditionally has been done orally Spoken communication pen and ink on paper or in writing on paper. telephone and voice mail two-way radio But in the current age we rely upon a vast computer and e-mail fax and text messaging array of media to report and communicate. television and pod-casts. Often the modern criminal justice manager is facing a severe “communications overload.” Too much information coming from too many sources of information. Managing Organizational Communications Mary Parker Follet (1868-1993) was trained in psychology and in the principles of scientific management, but foreshadowed the humans relations school. In 1926, in her frequently reprinted article, “The Giving of Orders” gave managers sound advice on how to communication with those around them. Mary Parker Follet observed that, “One might say that the strength of favorable response to an order is in inverse ratio to the distance the order travels. Production efficiency is always in danger of being affected whenever the long-distance order is substituted for the face-to-face suggestion that we want so much as the joint study of the problem.” Follet advocated a three-part process to communicating: (1) Generally there should not be orders, but manager and subordinate should follow the law of the situation; (2) One should recognize that situations are always evolving, so that rigid orders are quite out of place most of the time; and (3) Orders should be circular (reciprocal) in character, not linear (unidirectional behavior).

Communication Styles and Behaviors Four Basic Patterns of Managerial Communication: (1) Controlling: the manager dominates discussions, gives direction, and does not listen too much to subordinate or peers; (2) Relinquishing: the manager gives up most of his or her influence, allows others to dominate exchanges; (3) Defending: the manager withdraws from exchanges passively, or withdraws altogether, is not involved in the discussions, and avoids the issues that are raised;

(4) Developing: the manager encourages and participates in reciprocal exchanges of ideas, acknowledges and uses other’s ideas, share thoughts, and remains involved in the process throughout.

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How do we communicate face to face? Spoken words  Body language Written words  Symbolic and other nonverbal means Tonal qualities merged with spoken words

Reporting and Communications Problems 1. Technical transmission problems, noise and redundancy 2. Semantic problems (missing the proper meanings) because of past communication experiences, communications environment (context), facts-versus-opinions problems, abstractness of symbols or complexity 3. “The effectiveness problem,” the balance of effects and results 4. Level through which information must be transmitted, related to the size of organization and the number to whom the message must be conveyed 5. Acceptance of message (psychological dimensions)

1) 2) 3) 4) 5) 6) 7) 8)

Andrew J. DuBrin (1978) identified eight common communications barriers Preconceived ideas; Denial of contrary information; Use of personalized meaning; Lack of interest (MEGO: “my eyes glaze over”); Non-credibility of the source; Lack of communications skills; Poor organizational climate; and Use of complex channels Other Communications Barriers (1) Distortion (2) Filtering and (3) Overloading

Jargon & illegibility

Optimum Legibility Formula 1. Write the complete message down as quickly as possible while the idea is fresh in your mind. 2. Determine the purpose of the message by listing a few potential sentence subjects it implies or states. 3. Attempt to answer the six basic journalistic questions: who, what, when, where, why and how.

4. 5. 6. 7.

Rearrange the sentences in priority order. Place verbs immediately after their subjects. Eliminate all linking verbs. Use one verb per sentence. Non-Verbal Speech Clues (Paralanguage) are used as people speak, and these nonverbal vocal clues that help us know what they are thinking.

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Tonal Cues Pace of Speech Volume Silence and Pauses

Nonverbal Communication Facial expressions and Eye Contact Kinesics, Gestures, and Posture (body language) Space and Territory Environment Touch (tactile communications) Emblems

Using False Signals These cues can be used to send false messages. Imagine a police officer who is quiet and a model of courtesy until he makes an arrest. Then he turns livid, speaks with a violent rasp to his voice, and stands with fists clenched. His posture is very threatening, but it might just be an act to intimidate the person he is planning to arrest. The Language Itself – The Choice of Words Samuel I. Hayakawa (1906-1992) was a university professor of English, president of San Francisco State University, a former United States Senator from California, and author of Language in Thought and Action. Hayakawa believed we experience life through linguistic “abstractions,” yet linguistics can be deceived us. Hayakawa helped develop the study of semantics, which he defined as “the study of human interaction through communication.”

Hayakawa taught that words are symbols. As he would say, “The word is not the thing.” “The symbol is not the thing symbolized… The map is not the territory.” He divided our communications into three kinds of statements: Reports, Inferences and Judgments. Reports are statements that can be independently verified or disapproved. Inferences are statements of the unknown made on the basis of what is known, the essence of all theory.

Judgments are expressions of approval or disapproval; opinions about something that tell more about the speaker than about the subject under discussion.

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Written Communications As a feature of modern bureaucracies, the files are an essential part of all criminal justice organizations. Documentation is required within every criminal justice agency in the criminal justice system in order to produce records on every legal action and procedure. With extensive files in their possession, criminal justice managers have to ensure that these are stored in an orderly manner, are classified and categorized, and can be retrieved when needed. Document Classification – Protecting Sensitive Information Protecting sensitive information is an essential managerial responsibility. “Information Security” (INFOSEC) also is referred to as “document security.” Part of the security effort of a criminal justice manager is defining what information within the agency needs protection and why.

Many criminal justice agencies use the “document classification” terminology of the Department of Defense.

“For Official Use Only” (FOUO) “Confidential” “Secret” “Top Secret” “Top Secret with Special Access”

Developing an Information Security (INFOSEC) Plan 1. Identifying and assessing the value and sensitivity of the information the agency routinely handles. 2. Identifying potential threats 3. Identifying organizational vulnerabilities 4. Assessing the impact of the threat versus the costs of the protection systems to be used 5. Designing countermeasures

Computer and Communications Security (COMSEC) Cryptographic security Line security The criminal justice manager must be aware Transmissions security of the communications risk facing the agency Emanations security and develop security plans and procedures to counter those most likely to occur. Computer and Internet Security

1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Information Management Systems Reporting systems = input systems Records keeping systems = storage systems Data retrieval systems = output systems Data analysis = process systems, management summaries, consolidated reports Transmission systems

Making Use of Criminal Justice Data Numerous reporting aids can be employed to make data analysis easier for the criminal justice manager:  Spatial distribution graphics  Client-characteristics summaries  Temporal distribution reports  Case characteristics summaries  Individual performance summaries  Case flow reports  Unit performance summaries  Financial summaries The information generated by a criminal justice agency will be needed by its political superiors to help them plan and make policy. Moreover, criminal justice information needs to be provided selectively to the general public. Each criminal justice agency head and every senior manager must be held accountable to the public, and the proper reporting of police, prosecutorial, judicial, and correctional data in accurately analyzed formats will help criminal justice managers meet that mandate....