The opening part of the book is devoted to the general introduction into the criminal justice field. Stohr and Collins put a particular emphasis on the problem of the social perception of criminal justice organizations. Thus, the authors assume that investigating agencies have an ambiguous reputation regardless of the positive character of the activity they perform. They believe that the negative implications of the criminal world, on the whole, are transmitted to the activity of criminal justice workers that creates an unfavorable association of the latter in the mind of the society. Meanwhile, the authors presume that due to the vast employment of the criminal justice workers’ image in the media, social attitude to them is better than to the justice organizations (Stohr & Collins, 2009). One might suppose that the relevant phenomenon is determined by the common relative ignorance in the social justice field. Due to the lack of knowledge, particular facts are, consequently, replaced by some prejudices and faulty assumptions. Therefore, it is crucial that the society is aware of the character of the work that criminal justice organizations carry out.
A significant part of the material focuses on the description of the key characteristics of the criminal justice organizations. Stohr and Collins touch upon such vital aspects as law enforcement, courts, and corrections in the framework of the criminal justice environment. One of the principal ideas of the authors is to make the readers understand that the law enforcement activity of any criminal justice organization is to be analyzed at the local level. Hence, the performance of the relevant agencies is interconnected with the demands of the local society and the current circumstances of the regional environment (Stohr & Collins, 2009). The following insight, as well as the idea that the criminal justice workers depend on the formal and informal expectations, is critical for understanding the mechanism of the organizations’ performance.
The authors, likewise, point out that another factor that is determining the criminal justice institutions’ activity is the bureaucratic structure that is typical of the major part of these agencies (Stohr & Collins, 2009). One might assume that despite the generally negative attitude towards bureaucratic structures, such organizations still perform a considerable contribution to maintaining the safety and security of the citizens; thus, their importance should not be underestimated.
According to the authors, all the criminal justice agencies are united by the common targeting that comprises their base. Therefore, the principle aim of such organizations is both protecting the local environment from the criminal activity and carrying out the necessary preventative measures (Stohr & Collins, 2009).
Moreover, it is critical to distinguish the formal and informal types of criminal justice organizations. The following terms are normally applied in order to indicate the particular goals of an agency, whereas the principal aims are basically similar. Thus, Stohr and Collins note that the peculiar structure of informal organizations allows them to perform decision-making more freely. The relevant organizations have the privilege to choose their clientele, take up some tasks and turn down the others. Meanwhile, the authors suggest that the estimation of formal organizations’ performance is less problematic than that of informal agencies. They explain this phenomenon by the fact that formal aims are usually clearly put, and thus, it is easier to monitor their accomplishment. In the meantime, the authors add that formal goals are often unrealistic which means that criminal justice works are incapable of reaching them no matter how hard they try (Stohr & Collins, 2009).
Furthermore, the authors provide a brief description of the open and the closed types of criminal justice organizations. According to their point of view, the following descriptions are highly relative, and the majority of organizations should be referred to the mixed type. Thus, although prisons are commonly supposed to be closed organizations, in fact, their activity still implies some interconnections with the outside world. Stohr and Collins state that the closed character of criminal justice organization can be explained by their incapacity of revealing the details of their activity. Thus, in comparison to other socially useful organizations, these ones are unable to give interviews to the mass media that creates an implication of particular discretion (Stohr & Collins, 2009).
Another critical aspect that the relevant material elucidates is the question of ethics in the framework of the criminal justice field. Stohr and Collins point out the fact that this problem is often underestimated or completely overlooked, whereas, in fact, the question of ethics is of high importance to a criminal justice organization as long as they deal with human rights.
The authors draw a parallel between the level of the ethical competence of a criminal justice organization and that of the public trust. According to the authors, unethical behavior of particular criminal justice representatives is likely to contribute to a negative image of all the organizations in the relevant sphere (Stohr & Collins, 2009).
One might assume that the problem mentioned above is particularly important due to the fact that the criminal justice field is the one that focuses on the initially immoral behavior of criminal parties; therefore, potential unethical actions might not be in vivid contrast with the general environment. Hence, the potential corruption and the employment of excessive force might seem to be determined by the character of the context within which this type of organizations has to operate. The relevant problem is of high significance as unethical practices in criminal justice field lead to the lack of loyalty in clients so that the latter do not want to entrust their problems to the criminal justice workers. As a consequence, the representatives of the criminal environment receive an impression of a total absence of authority, and the new illegal acts are encouraged.
Stohr and Collins note that ethical standards are equally essential in both public and private criminal justice organizations. In order to state the necessary norms and monitor the employees’ performance, criminal justice agencies, as well as all the other organizations, have to employ a Code of Ethics. The relevant code is supposed to include all the criteria of the required ethical operation. The authors put a particular emphasis on the fact that the implementation of such a Code is mutually beneficial for criminal justice workers and their clients. Whereas the employees receive a precise guideline for the expected conduct, the former have a formal guarantee of proper treatment (Stohr & Collins, 2009).
Finally, the material at hand provides a series of insights on the management issue in the context of criminal justice. The relevant aspect is particularly curious as one can hardly associate management with the criminal justice performance. Meanwhile, the efficiency of the activity of such organizations is to a great extent determined by the appropriateness of the management theory employed.
Thus, Stohr and Collins explain that motivation is the principle driving force of the criminal justice representatives as well as of any other employees. The authors point out that the most successful managers in the relevant field tend to focus on the desirable results that imply general public safety and security. Such leaders manage to transform the targeted goals into a common concern and inspire their subordinates to unite their efforts. The authors perform a concise overview of those managerial practices that used to be employed in the past and those that are typically used in the modern time. The background analysis makes them come to a conclusion that as well as in any other field, efficient management in criminal justice sphere bases on precise targeting, high-qualified leadership and skillful motivating (Stohr & Collins, 2009).
In conclusion, one should necessarily note that the material at hand provides a profound analysis of the principal mechanisms of the activity of criminal justice organizations. The authors’ detailed descriptions get the readers acquainted with the basic principles of the criminal agencies’ structure, the main management techniques, and the ethical issues that refer to the relevant field. The provided insights offer a new outlook on the problem of the criminal justice field by pointing out its complexity and significance. The authors manage to explain the most complicated aspects of the discussed concepts such as the difference between various types of criminal justice agencies and the sense of the basic terms that are applied to describe them.
Reference List
Stohr, M.K., & Collins, P.A. (2009). Criminal Justice Management. Oxford: Oxford University Press.