Uncomfortable knowledge, the production of ignorance, and the trustworthiness of UK policing

Fenton-O’Creevy, Mark; Bowles, Benjamin; Maguire, Linda; Williams, Emma

Abstract

In this article, we draw on emerging theories of the production of ignorance in organizations. We conduct a qualitative analysis of two forms of secondary data on policing in England and Wales: first, documents in the public domain from the Casey Review and the Angiolini Inquiry; second, qualitative data collected as part of ‘Operation Soteria’ a UK Home Office-funded programme designed to improve the investigation of rape and serious sexual offences. We highlight the adverse effects of avoidance of uncomfortable knowledge, organizational silence, and non-learning in policing. We argue that they are both important contributors to the crisis of legitimacy faced by UK policing, and barriers to effective change. Finally, we discuss structural conditions that support the production and reproduction of ignorance and approaches to ‘undoing ignorance’.

Citation

Fenton-O’Creevy, M., Bowles, B., Maguire, L., & Williams, E. (2024). Uncomfortable knowledge, the production of ignorance, and the trustworthiness of UK policing. Policing: a Journal of Policy and Practice, 18, Article paae117. https://doi.org/10.1093/police/paae117

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Publication Date: Nov 27, 2024
• Deposit Date: Dec 7, 2024
• Publicly Available Date: Dec 7, 2024
• Journal: Policing: A Journal of Policy and Practice
• Electronic ISSN: 1752-4520
• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 18
• Article Number: paae117
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/police/paae117
• Publisher URL: https://academic.oup.com/policing/article/doi/10.1093/police/paae117/7909249