Setting the Scene

This study has its origins in a previous research project, directed by the author, during which attitudes towards policewomen were surveyed as part of a more extensive inquiry into police—public relationships1 and police officers’ attitudes towards organisational aspects of the police service.2 One general finding, supported and corroborated by informal observations and discussions with police officers, was that the attitudes of many male officers (and, indeed, some female officers) remain coloured by their limited views about the role of policewomen; views which often reflect their more general attitudes towards women in society.