The Leadership and Motivation Theories in Action

The Leadership and Motivation Theories in Action

The Role of Leadership in a Law Enforcement Agency

Leadership in a law enforcement agency includes a wide range of responsibilities to ensure the agency meets stakeholders’ expectations. One of the responsibilities is overseeing the training of all staff to ensure that they have the required skills and competence to complete assigned tasks. According to Birzer et al. (2012), leaders in a law enforcement agency need to identify training needs based on new tactics, threats, and equipment within the work environment. The second responsibility is protecting the agency and employees from criminal and civil liability. The leader must collaborate with the agency’s risk management or legal specialist to ensure employee practices comply with legal requirements. The third responsibility is to identify and mitigate risks associated with employment practices, such as racial discrimination complaints and the use of excessive force. The leader must ensure that the agency develops and enforces policies, procedures, and rules to minimize the likelihood of malpractice.

The Role of Motivation in Effective Leadership

Motivation plays a vital role in enhancing leadership effectiveness. One of the main roles of motivation in effective leadership is increasing commitment. Motivated leaders are committed to providing the best leadership and mobilizing employees to work hard toward meeting the organization’s objectives. Motivation also increases leaders’ commitment because they feel valued and motivated, thus enhancing leadership effectiveness. The second role is increased accountability. Motivation creates a sense of responsibility among leaders, thus influencing their willingness to accept responsibilities within the organization and meet its expectations. The third role is promoting innovation. According to Andika & Xia (2019), motivation encourages employees to try new ideas, thus increasing innovation. Therefore, motivated leaders can develop creative ideas to resolve problems within the organization and improve the organization’s performance, thus promoting effective leadership.

Motivation Theories for Analysis within a Law Enforcement Construct

Maslow’s theory of needs is one motivation theory that applies to the law enforcement construct. According to Genkova (2021), Maslow’s theory posits that people are motivated based on how their needs are met. The needs are categorized into safety, physiological, esteem, love and belonging, and self-actualization. The second theory is the equity theory. The equity theory is a person’s subjective judgment of whether or not they have received a reasonable reward compared to what other workers receive (Ďuriš et al., 2018). The theory posits that people are motivated by fairness and feel more appreciated when rewarded based on their organizational input. Input includes a commitment to the organization, the number of hours worked, experiences brought to the organization, and flexibility demonstrated by accepting assignments on short notice.

Influence of Motivation Theories on the Behavior of Law Enforcement Personnel

The Maslow Theory might influence the behavior of law enforcement personnel based on the work environment. A work environment that recognizes law enforcement officers’ psychological needs positively influences their behavior. However, Maslow’s Theory of needs may affect the behavior of law enforcement personnel negatively because the nature of their work includes dealing with citizens who may not appreciate their work, thus denying them an opportunity to meet their esteem needs. Maslow’s theory may also hurt the behavior of law enforcement personnel when their safety needs are unmet. Law enforcement personnel are exposed to situations that risk their safety, especially when arresting violent offenders. The equity theory might influence law enforcement personnel when rewarded fairly based on their commitment and hard work. For example, law enforcement officers who receive rewards after closing a case develop a sense of belonging, thus increasing their commitment. However, the equity theory may also foster negative behavior if law enforcement personnel working on the same case are not all rewarded when the case is closed.

Implementing Motivation Theories to Enhance Ethical Leadership in a Law Enforcement Agency

The law enforcement agency could implement the Maslow theory to enhance leadership by focusing on the psychological needs of the law enforcement personnel to motivate a positive attitude among them to meet stakeholder expectations. The attitude of law enforcement officers mainly causes ethical issues in law enforcement. For instance, a negative attitude towards their work may reduce their commitment, thus limiting their ability to meet stakeholder expectations. Consequently, a positive attitude towards their work may foster collaboration with other stakeholders, such as the community, to improve policing and enhance safety. The law enforcement agency could also implement the equity theory to enhance ethical leadership by ensuring that employees are rewarded fairly and their contribution to the agency is recognized.

Leadership Actions That Could Positively Influence Ethical Behavior by Employees

One of the actions that police leadership should consider to instill ethical behavior among law enforcement agencies is developing policies and procedures that set expectations on the required code of conduct among employees. For example, the policies and procedures may prohibit unethical conduct such as bribes, misuse of authority and public resources, and racial discrimination. The second action is rewarding employees who behave ethically to motivate others to adopt the same behavior. The third action is being a role model. Employees are likely to behave ethically if their leaders behave ethically. Therefore, police leaders should demonstrate high levels of integrity to set a good example for the employees and create an environment where employees feel obliged to behave ethically.

References

Andika, F. T., & Xia, Z. (2019). Impact of transformational leadership and compensation on innovation behavior, with extrinsic motivation as mediator. Russian Journal of Agricultural and Socio-Economic Sciences, 87(3), 27–38. https://doi.org/10.18551/rjoas.2019-03.05

Birzer, M. L., Bayens, G. J., & Roberson, C. (2012). Principles of Leadership and Management in Law Enforcement. https://doi.org/10.1201/b12186

Ďuriš, M., Heligman., R., & Strážovská, Ľ. (2018). Basic Theories of Motivation in Slovac Police Force and their Application in Practice. SOCIÁLNO-EKONOMICKÁ REVUE, 4. https://doi.org/https://fsev.tnuni.sk/revue/papers/214.pdf

Genkova, D. (2021). Modeling human needs: An economic interpretation of Maslow’s theory of motivation. WSEAS TRANSACTIONS ON BUSINESS AND ECONOMICS, 18, 253–264. https://doi.org/10.37394/23207.2021.18.26

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Before beginning work on this assignment, review the required resources for this week’s module. Sometimes, many underestimate the education, training, and experience necessary for successful police services. This attitude also impacts how people view the role of leadership in law enforcement agencies. Many leaders in a law enforcement agency, including the chief executive officer. Research has identified multiple theories regarding leadership and the motivation theories that influence leadership. Utilizing the information provided for this module and your research, explore motivation theories and their impact on leadership.

In your paper,

Discuss the role of leadership in a law enforcement agency.
Discuss the role of motivation in effective leadership.
Identify two motivation theories for analysis within a law enforcement construct.
Explain how these theories might influence the behavior of law enforcement personnel either positively or negatively.
Explain how a law enforcement agency could implement these theories to enhance ethical leadership.
Identify actions that police leadership could undertake to influence ethical behavior by employees positively.