Have you heard of evidence-based policing?

This fact sheet introduces evidence-based policing as a methodology to improve police effectiveness and public trust by basing activities on the best existing research rather than intuition or tradition. It outlines a three-step process of targeting, testing, and tracking, and advocates for the adoption of this approach within South African policing to ensure strategies are informed by reliable data and can withstand scrutiny.

• Evidence-based policing is defined as a method where police activities are guided by the best existing research regarding what works and what does not, rather than relying solely on experience and intuition. This approach mirrors the medical field, where treatments are constantly checked for effectiveness and information is shared to ensure continuous improvement.
• The document proposes a three-step operational cycle for evidence-based policing: first, targeting activities on specific problems or places based on research; second, testing ideas to learn what actually works instead of relying on common sense; and third, tracking, documenting, and sharing results to modify work practices.
• Traditional policing models are described as not always effective, often wasting time and money. Specifically, the document notes that mandatory follow-up investigations, rapid response, and random patrol have limited impact on safety and crime, and it is unclear if incarceration and arrest prevent crime beyond a certain point.
• Three specific police practices are highlighted as being supported by good evidence: hot spot policing, which targets small areas of concentrated crime to decrease harm; procedural justice, which builds trust and law obedience when people believe police treat them fairly; and focused deterrence, which reduces crime by combining warnings to likely offenders with offers of real assistance like social support or skills training.
• The document distinguishes between different levels of evidence reliability. High-quality evidence comes from the summary of all relevant research or information tested using three or more different methods. In contrast, opinions, anecdotes, once-off research, poorly designed studies, or research based on small samples are considered unreliable for guiding police work.

APA

Institute for Security Studies (n.d.). Have you heard of evidence-based policing? https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/2019-09-11-broichure-evidence-based-policing.pdf

Chicago

Institute for Security Studies. Have you heard of evidence-based policing? n.d. https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/2019-09-11-broichure-evidence-based-policing.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Institute for Security Studies |title=Have you heard of evidence-based policing? |url=https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/2019-09-11-broichure-evidence-based-policing.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{instituteforsecuritystudiesndhave, author = {{Institute for Security Studies}}, title = {{Have you heard of evidence-based policing?}}, institution = {Institute for Security Studies}, url = {https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/2019-09-11-broichure-evidence-based-policing.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }