Disrupting the "Heroic" Male Within Policing: A Case of Direct Entry. (July 2018)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Silvestri, Marisa
• Other Names: Rabe-Hemp Cara E. guest-editor.; Miller Susan L. guest-editor.
• Is Part Of: Feminist criminology. Volume 13:Number 3(2018)
• Page Start: 309
• Page End: 328
• Publication Date: 2018-07
• Subjects: policing -- women -- leadership -- Direct Entry -- heroic male -- gendered identities; Feminist criminology -- Periodicals; Female offenders -- Periodicals; 364.37405
• DOI: 10.1177/1557085118763737
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1557-0851

Abstract

This article drives forward a more critical insight into the position of women within policing. In focusing on women as police leaders, it problematizes taken for granted representations of gender and proposes an alternative reading of their experiences. Drawing on theoretical work on gendered organizations, the article argues that greater attention needs to be paid to the cultural and structural conditions that enable the "heroic male" to emerge as the "ideal" police leader. It also considers the recent introduction of Direct Entry for senior officers in England and Wales as a disruptive tool to the gendered order within policing.