Focus your response based on chapter three (Durose and Langton) and four (Worden et al.).
In 2000 words or more, please explain what we have learned about policing through official data and Systematic Social Observation. Please describe the strengths and weaknesses of each form of data collection. How do we gain varying perspectives about policing using each method.
https://books.google.tt/books?id=nqW3BgAAQBAJ&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=true
Sample solution
Dante Alighieri played a critical role in the literature world through his poem Divine Comedy that was written in the 14th century. The poem contains Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso. The Inferno is a description of the nine circles of torment that are found on the earth. It depicts the realms of the people that have gone against the spiritual values and who, instead, have chosen bestial appetite, violence, or fraud and malice. The nine circles of hell are limbo, lust, gluttony, greed and wrath. Others are heresy, violence, fraud, and treachery. The purpose of this paper is to examine the Dante’s Inferno in the perspective of its portrayal of God’s image and the justification of hell.
In this epic poem, God is portrayed as a super being guilty of multiple weaknesses including being egotistic, unjust, and hypocritical. Dante, in this poem, depicts God as being more human than divine by challenging God’s omnipotence. Additionally, the manner in which Dante describes Hell is in full contradiction to the morals of God as written in the Bible. When god arranges Hell to flatter Himself, He commits egotism, a sin that is common among human beings (Cheney, 2016). The weakness is depicted in Limbo and on the Gate of Hell where, for instance, God sends those who do not worship Him to Hell. This implies that failure to worship Him is a sin.
God is also depicted as lacking justice in His actions thus removing the godly image. The injustice is portrayed by the manner in which the sodomites and opportunists are treated. The opportunists are subjected to banner chasing in their lives after death followed by being stung by insects and maggots. They are known to having done neither good nor bad during their lifetimes and, therefore, justice could have demanded that they be granted a neutral punishment having lived a neutral life. The sodomites are also punished unfairly by God when Brunetto Lattini is condemned to hell despite being a good leader (Babor, T. F., McGovern, T., & Robaina, K. (2017). While he commited sodomy, God chooses to ignore all the other good deeds that Brunetto did.
Finally, God is also portrayed as being hypocritical in His actions, a sin that further diminishes His godliness and makes Him more human. A case in point is when God condemns the sin of egotism and goes ahead to commit it repeatedly. Proverbs 29:23 states that “arrogance will bring your downfall, but if you are humble, you will be respected.” When Slattery condemns Dante’s human state as being weak, doubtful, and limited, he is proving God’s hypocrisy because He is also human (Verdicchio, 2015). The actions of God in Hell as portrayed by Dante are inconsistent with the Biblical literature. Both Dante and God are prone to making mistakes, something common among human beings thus making God more human.
To wrap it up, Dante portrays God is more human since He commits the same sins that humans commit: egotism, hypocrisy, and injustice. Hell is justified as being a destination for victims of the mistakes committed by God. The Hell is presented as being a totally different place as compared to what is written about it in the Bible. As a result, reading through the text gives an image of God who is prone to the very mistakes common to humans thus ripping Him off His lofty status of divine and, instead, making Him a mere human. Whether or not Dante did it intentionally is subject to debate but one thing is clear in the poem: the misconstrued notion of God is revealed to future generations.
References
Babor, T. F., McGovern, T., & Robaina, K. (2017). Dante’s inferno: Seven deadly sins in scientific publishing and how to avoid them. Addiction Science: A Guide for the Perplexed, 267.
Cheney, L. D. G. (2016). Illustrations for Dante’s Inferno: A Comparative Study of Sandro Botticelli, Giovanni Stradano, and Federico Zuccaro. Cultural and Religious Studies, 4(8), 487.
Verdicchio, M. (2015). Irony and Desire in Dante’s” Inferno” 27. Italica, 285-297.
Understanding Policing Through Official Data and Systematic Social Observation
Introduction
The study of policing is crucial for maintaining public safety and order within communities. Two primary methods for understanding policing practices and their impact are through official data and systematic social observation. This essay will delve into what we have learned about policing through these two forms of data collection, highlighting their strengths and weaknesses, and discussing how varying perspectives about policing can be gained through each method.
Official Data
What We Have Learned
Official data in policing typically includes statistics on reported crimes, arrests, response times, and clearance rates. Through the analysis of official data, researchers and policymakers can gain insights into crime trends, resource allocation, and the effectiveness of law enforcement strategies. For example, official data can reveal patterns in criminal activity, such as high-crime areas or specific types of offenses that are on the rise.
Strengths
1. Quantitative Insights: Official data provide quantitative information that can be used to measure the prevalence of crime and police activities.
2. Reliability: As official data are collected by law enforcement agencies, they are considered reliable and standardized across jurisdictions.
3. Longitudinal Analysis: Official data allow for the tracking of crime trends over time, enabling researchers to identify patterns and changes in policing practices.
Weaknesses
1. Underreporting: Official data may not capture all criminal activities due to underreporting by victims or inconsistencies in reporting practices.
2. Bias: Data collection processes within law enforcement agencies may be influenced by biases or systemic issues, leading to inaccuracies in the recorded information.
3. Limited Context: Official data may lack contextual information about the circumstances surrounding reported crimes, limiting the depth of analysis.
Varying Perspectives
By analyzing official data, researchers can gain a macro-level perspective on policing practices, crime rates, and law enforcement outcomes. This method allows for comparisons across different regions or time periods, highlighting disparities in crime rates and police responses. However, official data may not capture the nuances of police-community interactions or the subjective experiences of individuals involved in policing incidents.
Systematic Social Observation
What We Have Learned
Systematic social observation involves direct observation of police activities, interactions with community members, and responses to various situations. Researchers using this method immerse themselves in the field to witness firsthand how police officers operate, communicate, and address issues within their jurisdiction. Through systematic social observation, insights into police behavior, community relations, and procedural practices can be gained.
Strengths
1. Contextual Understanding: Systematic social observation provides a rich, qualitative understanding of policing practices within real-world contexts.
2. In-depth Analysis: Researchers can observe nuances in police behavior, communication styles, and decision-making processes that may not be captured in official data.
3. Community Perspectives: By engaging directly with community members and observing police-community interactions, researchers can gain insights into public perceptions of law enforcement.
Weaknesses
1. Subjectivity: Observations conducted in the field may be influenced by researchers’ biases or interpretations, potentially impacting the validity of the findings.
2. Resource Intensive: Systematic social observation requires significant time, resources, and access to police departments, making it a more challenging method to implement on a large scale.
3. Limited Generalizability: Findings from systematic social observation studies may not always be generalizable to broader populations or police agencies due to the specificity of the observations.
Varying Perspectives
Through systematic social observation, researchers can gain a micro-level perspective on policing practices by immersing themselves in the day-to-day activities of law enforcement officers. This method allows for a nuanced understanding of police-community dynamics, officer decision-making processes, and the impact of policing strategies on individuals within the community. By directly observing police interactions and behaviors, researchers can uncover subtleties that official data may overlook.
Conclusion
In conclusion, both official data and systematic social observation offer valuable insights into policing practices and their impact on communities. Official data provide quantitative information on crime trends and law enforcement activities, while systematic social observation offers a qualitative understanding of police behaviors and community relations. By utilizing both methods in conjunction, researchers can gain a comprehensive view of policing that incorporates both macro-level trends and micro-level interactions. Through a multidimensional approach to data collection and analysis, a more holistic understanding of policing can be achieved, informing evidence-based policy decisions and enhancing police-community relations for the betterment of society.
