Self-described Attitudes and Difficulties Perceived in Mexican Police Officers

Policing involves inter-subjective mechanisms needed to infer the violation of social values or to motivate prosocial actions. These mechanisms can be observed in the attitudes and problems that officers believe influence their work performance, but this first-person approach is not considered in recent police reforms in Mexico. We present an ethnographic examination and a psychometric evaluation with the objective of identifying attitudes and perceptions that a group of municipal police officers in Mexico formed about themselves and their institution, as well as the difficulties in their day-to-day role. Some of the fundamental qualities for being a police officer imply attitudes of risk and cooperation linked to human motivational systems denoting the welfare of others. The concepts of social welfare and cooperation can be used as ethical and motivational mechanisms during training. Social intersubjectivity is relevant since officers have legitimate permission to use coercion as a means of social justice and order. It becomes necessary to have institutional supervision, as well as training in interpersonal skills, and regulation of adverse states, which can be elicited by the apparent inconsistency between the use of coercion and the promotion of order and justice.