CHAPTER 3: ETHICS OF POLICE SUPERVISION

Question 1

It is not ________ to expect that, in addition to following the canons of ethics for law enforcement officers, the police supervisor has his own extra set of ethics to adhere to as a leader.

Answer 1

unreasonable

Question 2

Ethics have been termed “________” and have been referred to as a set of moral principles.

Answer 2

“rules of proper conduct”

Question 3

Ethics are said to deal with the nature of the “good and _____.”

Answer 3

“right”

Question 4

In their most _________, ethics are said to be the science of the human character in its ideal state of being. Ethics may encompass all of these things and more.

Answer 4

formal sense

Question 5

Rather, in order to be most effective, any set of ethics or rules must be drawn up and supported by way of ________ by the very people most likely to use them.

Answer 5

example

Question 6

Police officers have had their own Law Enforcement Code of Ethics since ____ when the International Association of Chiefs of Police
(IACP) adopted a code developed earlier by the California Peace Officers’ Association and the Peace Officers’ Research Association of California. Many other organizations and associations have since ac-cepted and promulgated the code. Its concise, direct language appears to have contributed to its widespread acceptance in American law enforcement.

Answer 6

1957

Question 7

THE POLICE SUPERVISOR’S CODE OF ETHICS

Loyal: to employer, to subordinates, to _______.

A code of ethics of this nature makes no claim that the police
supervisor is a superman or superwoman or should be one. It asks no one to become an angel. It allows for human frailties, but it also de-mands that the ethical supervisor work always to better himself and his job performance.

Answer 7

myself

Question 8

RESPONSIBILITIES TO MANAGEMENT:

It has already been noted in the proposed Police Supervisor’s Code of Ethics that the organization and its managers are owed the ______ loyalty of their supervisory officers.

Answer 8

honest

Question 9

RESPONSIBILITIES TO MANAGEMENT:

If he disagrees with a proposed course of action, loyalty commands that he question the directive at the right time and in the _______. This will mean that an order issued under emergency conditions will be obeyed now and questioned or discussed later, unless obedience calls for obviously ille-gal or immoral behavior.

Answer 9

right way

Question 10

RESPONSIBILITIES TO MANAGEMENT:

Loyalty also speaks to the issue of the proper way or place in
which to question or debate orders and directives. The _____ sergeant meets with his immediate supervisor in private to tell him why he feels that an ordered course of action must not be followed. He pre-sents calm, logical arguments for his point of view.

Answer 10

wise

Question 11

RESPONSIBILITIES TO MANAGEMENT:

The loyal supervisor does not broadcast ill will about the organi-zation of which he is a member. He has an obligation to address him-self to its ________, but in the proper places and at the proper times. Such places do not include social gatherings with other mem-bers of the community. If he shows little pride in his organization, it is doubtful that others will show much, either.

Answer 11

shortcomings

Question 12

RESPONSIBILITIES TO MANAGEMENT:

The ethical police supervisor must develop a reputation for reliability with his superiors. This proven ability to “get it done” allows those superiors to concentrate upon other things, safe in the assurance that the called for work will be performed as requested. A reputation for reliability cannot help but _______ the supervisor in his own chances for promotion through demonstrated merit.

Answer 12

strengthen

Question 13

RESPONSIBILITIES TO MANAGEMENT:

Every police sergeant worth his chevrons owes his boss __________ in all things. This truthfulness must survive even if the information being presented is unpopular, unfavorable, or downright unbe-lievable.

Answer 13

absolute honestly

Question 14

RESPONSIBILITIES TO MANAGEMENT:

One of the first-line supervisor’s key responsibilities is the ______ and ______ of facts. Distorted or omitted facts can destroy the supervisor as an effective and reliable communicator.

Answer 14

gathering and reporting

Question 15

RESPONSIBILITIES TO MANAGEMENT:

The supervisor who sees nothing but negatives is just as off base as the individual who praises everything new just because it is ____.

Answer 15

new

Question 16

RESPONSIBILITIES TO MANAGEMENT:

The supervisor has a better chance of seeing his
“no” vote take effect if he presents his opinion in a constructive and _____ worded manner.

Answer 16

carefully

Question 17

RESPONSIBILITIES TO MANAGEMENT:

An earned reputation for a lack of credibility on the part of the supervisor will ______ his value to the agency and to the subordinates whose interests he supposedly represents.

Answer 17

lessen

Question 18

RESPONSIBILITIES TO MANAGEMENT:

The responsible supervisor keeps his own boss and, consequently,
management as a whole, well-informed. Managers do not like ______, particularly when those surprises tend to show them and their people in a bad light.

Answer 18

surprises

Question 19

RESPONSIBILITIES TO MANAGEMENT:

The really difficult part is determining what the boss wants to know about and what can be handled at a _________ of command.

Answer 19

lower level

Question 20

RESPONSIBILITIES TO MANAGEMENT:

The efficient and effective police supervisor needs more than the
aid and good will of the boss to succeed in his leadership role. He also must have the help and __________ of his fellow supervisors.

Answer 20

combined wisdom

Question 21

RESPONSIBILITIES TO MANAGEMENT:

The supervisor who cannot work and communicate well with his _____ is not fulfilling his responsibility to his employer or to himself. There is no need for a supervisor to face each and every job crisis as a new and unknown problem. Such an approach is unnecessary when the solution may already exist at a convenient source: the bank of knowl-edge and experience contained within the minds of the agency’s other supervisors. The supervisor who is loyal to his organization and him-self also is loyal to his fellow supervisors.

Answer 21

peers

Question 22

RESPONSIBILITIES TO MANAGEMENT:

No one should deny the supervisor the privilege of ______
informally or socially with those above him and outside of his immediate chain of command. When such talk is intentionally aimed at sidestepping the supervisor’s own boss, however, it begins to smack of disloyalty.

Answer 22

talking shop

Question 23

RESPONSIBILITIES TO MANAGEMENT:

Regardless of who is the target, cruel ______ must be tracked to their source whenever possible. If the author of the lie has concocted the scheme to cause misery to another individual, formal disciplinary action may be the only adequate response.

Answer 23

untruths

Question 24

RESPONSIBILITIES TO MANAGEMENT:

Tracing a major, malicious rumor to its source will require the
_______ and backing of the agency’s managers.

Answer 24

knowledge

Question 25

RESPONSIBILITIES TO OFFICERS:

He is their _____ with higher authority. He must accurately and faithfully convey their grievances, thoughts, feelings, and ideas to the levels of the organiza-tion where they can be acted upon.

Answer 25

link

Question 26

RESPONSIBILITIES TO OFFICERS:

The careful sergeant must avoid ________ his employees’ words
in the light of what he thinks they mean. He must repeat their words back to them and ask them to clarify points that he does not under-stand. When he is sure of their message, then and only then can he pass it along the chain of command. He is charged with the duty of relaying information accurately. He also is responsible for seeing that he does not alter the meaning of the message just to avoid provoking someone higher in the command chain. Accuracy, not the boss’s reac-tion, is his primary concern.

Answer 26

paraphrasing

Question 27

RESPONSIBILITIES TO OFFICERS:

The good supervisor must always be ______ with his subordinates. He relays the bad news along with the good. He may soften a blow in the manner in which he presents his information. The mes-sage itself, however, must remain true in content and spirit

Answer 27

truthful

Question 28

RESPONSIBILITIES TO OFFICERS:

The truthful and honorable police leader does not lie to a subordinate to save that subordinate’s feelings. Neither does he give ________ and unwarranted praise.

Answer 28

groundless

Question 29

RESPONSIBILITIES TO OFFICERS:

The team leader must acknowledge ________ for his actions,
popular or not.

Answer 29

responsibility

Question 30

RESPONSIBILITIES TO OFFICERS:

It is permissible for him to tell his officers that he is going to speak out for a change on their behalf. He must not, however, ______ and _____ for it in front of them.

Answer 30

argue and bicker

Question 31

RESPONSIBILITIES TO OFFICERS:

The police supervisor owes his employees ____ and impartial con-duct in all of his dealings with them. The job of supervisor is not the place to even-up old grudges or pay back old and still open accounts.

Answer 31

fair

Question 32

RESPONSIBILITIES TO OFFICERS:

Fairness in all dealings means that even the appearance of prejudice or ______ must be avoided.

Answer 32

partiality

Question 33

RESPONSIBILITIES TO OFFICERS:

The responsible supervisor will show genuine concern for his
workers’ problems and worries. Even the unrealistic worries of his people deserve the careful and ___________ of the supervisor

Answer 33

immediate attention

Question 34

RESPONSIBILITIES TO OFFICERS:

It is up to him to _____ their fears as much as possible by explaining the basis for his own confident state of mind.

Answer 34

allay

Question 35

RESPONSIBILITIES TO OFFICERS:

The responsible police supervisor attempts to further his peoples’
abilities and aid them in developing their careers to _________. Encouragement and advancement of those careers may take various forms.

Answer 35

full potential

Question 36

RESPONSIBILITIES TO OFFICERS:

The sergeant is also furthering a subordinate’s career when he
praises where appropriate and _______ where required. Outstanding work must not go unrewarded, even if that reward may be no more than some carefully chosen words of praise from the sarge.

Answer 36

corrects

Question 37

RESPONSIBILITIES TO OFFICERS:

To ignore an out of the ordinary performance, good or bad, is to fail to carry out one of the supervisor’s most vital functions: _______ and _____.

Answer 37

evaluation and review

Question 38

RESPONSIBILITIES TO SELF

No police leader can serve his agency and his subordinates in a
responsible fashion unless he is first ______ to himself. Just as he must be honest with others, so must he be truthful to himself.

Answer 38

responsible

Question 39

RESPONSIBILITIES TO SELF

The socially responsible police supervisor is self-confident about
his strengths, but he is willing to ______ the possibility of problems in his performance, too.

Answer 39

examine

Question 40

RESPONSIBILITIES TO SELF

Just as he is neither cocky nor arrogant about his good points, neither is he _____ embarrassed or defensive about his challenges. When he needs help with a given problem, he wisely finds a source of competent assistance.

Answer 40

unduly

Question 41

RESPONSIBILITIES TO SELF

The supervisor rightly concerned about his body will eliminate
harmful habits such as smoking (at all) or drinking alcohol in excessive amounts. Both objectives are, of course, easier stated than done. When successfully accomplished, however, both also add greatly to a growing _______ and total health picture. The use of illegal drugs or the abuse of legal ones also will be on the intelligent super-visor’s personal roster of banned behaviors.

Answer 41

self-assurance

Question 42

RESPONSIBILITIES TO SELF

They then apply themselves to enjoying as many of these things as they can, both as fully and as often as possible. It is not coincidental that many of these same supervisors appear to be the most ______ as well as the most effective people when they are working.

Answer 42

content

Question 43

RESPONSIBILITIES TO SELF

A sergeant or other police leader who has learned the ways of
responsibility to self consistently sets a ________ for his troops to follow.

Answer 43

good example

Question 44

RESPONSIBILITIES TO SELF

The _______ supervisor leads by example in attitude, too.

Answer 44

exemplary

Question 45

RESPONSIBILITIES TO SELF

He asserts them and, where necessary, defends them intelligently and ______. He does not rage and shout but he does reason and persuade.

Answer 45

reasonably

Question 46

RESPONSIBILITIES TO THE COMMUNITY

When he follows the chain of command back to its very beginning, it is to these people that he owes his _________. What he does for them and how he does it will help determine whether or not he is truly living up to the demands of his ethical code.

Answer 46

first allegiance

Question 47

RESPONSIBILITIES TO THE COMMUNITY

The first-line law enforcement leader owes his _________ his best
work, just as do his peers, subordinates, and superiors who are also on the public’s payroll. It is not likely that the hard-working police sergeant has any problem with that. But he owes the taxpayers more, as well. He is also responsible for assuring that they get their money’s worth in the job performance of the team he leads.

Answer 47

constituents

Question 48

RESPONSIBILITIES TO THE COMMUNITY

The ethical law enforcement leader also knows that he best serves
his community as well as his subordinates when he acts as a _______ role model for what a peace officer should be.

Answer 48

positive

Question 49

SUMMARY

The supervisor who wants to do his job well is also responsible and accountable to the citizens he serves, whatever his jurisdiction happens to be. He owes them the best service he can ______.

Answer 49

render

Question 50

SUMMARY

He ____ that profession the most ethical, responsible, competent job he can possibly do.

Answer 50

owes

Question 51

SUMMARY

Most of all, however, the police leader laboring persistently and
ethically within the guidelines of his responsibilities must recognize his _______ obligations to himself.

Answer 51

paramount

Question 52

SUMMARY

Only when the supervisor knows that he is performing in a manner in which he can be rightfully and personally proud can he honestly lay claim to meeting the ________ of his calling.

Answer 52

ethical requisites

Question 53

POINTS TO REMEMBER

The law enforcement supervisor must adhere to his own ________.

Answer 53

Code of Ethics

Question 54

POINTS TO REMEMBER

The police supervisor demonstrates _______ to his agency and its leaders

Answer 54

loyalty

Question 55

POINTS TO REMEMBER

The suppression of ______ is an important task of the police leader

Answer 55

rumors

Question 56

POINTS TO REMEMBER

The leader owes his loyalty to his subordinates and is responsible for their ______.

Answer 56

welfare

Question 57

POINTS TO REMEMBER

The leader also has obligations to ______ and assures that he remains physically, emotionally, and morally healthy

Answer 57

himself

Question 58

POINTS TO REMEMBER

The law enforcement leader is aware of his obligation to serve his community in a moral and _____ fashion.

Answer 58

ethical

Question 59

POINTS TO REMEMBER

Above all, the supervisor serves as an excellent role model of what a ________.

Answer 59

leader should be