Citation

Morash M, Haarr RN. Fem. Criminol. 2012; 7(1): 3-23.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2012, SAGE Publishing)

DOI

10.1177/1557085111413253

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

For a study of police women's identities, qualitative data were generated from in-depth interviews with 21 women working in two metropolitan police departments and varying in race, ethnicity, rank, and tenure. Most women identified female-male differences but noted exceptions. Many felt characteristics concentrated among women enhanced job performance, and men's characteristics damaged performance. Several insisted that sex-category differences in key attributes accounting for good police work were nonexistent or minimal. Women do not simply reproduce old female-male stereotypes and the hierarchies that devalue female-associated traits. They fashion complex, positive occupational identities that are not necessarily tied to their sex category.

Language: en