CHAPTER SEVEN: TRAINING NEEDS

When the research team inquired about first steps in launching a GIS capability in a small to medium jurisdiction, staff training was invariably at the forefront. Whereas a larger jurisdiction will be able to hire one or more GIS experts who are already trained and experienced in crime analysis, the small to medium jurisdiction will rarely be able to do so. Those in the field observe that it is more effective to add GIS technical skills to a crime analyst than to add crime analysis capabilities to a GIS technician. Partly for this reason, by far the most common pattern in smaller jurisdictions is to designate an existing member of the crime analysis staff who must acquire GIS expertise and apply it to the local law enforcement environment largely on his or her own. In small and even medium jurisdictions, that person is the only crime analysis officer.

The research findings of this chapter imply for public policy that the promotion of training opportunities must be a major priority for any funding strategy to promote the diffusion of crime mapping capabilities within the law enforcement agencies of small to medium North Carolina towns and cities. Training is most effective when promoted simultaneously with infrastructure investment. Also, there is a need to promote networking among crime mapping staff in North Carolina.

Training Principles

Train before GIS implementation

It is common sense that a crime mapping staff person, however well-educated and trained in other respects, needs training in geographic information systems. However, the reality is that this common sense concept may be overlooked for two reasons:

(1) On the job training is not enough. Large jurisdictions may provide the only viable models. On the job learning and experimentation, without substantial training, "worked" in these jurisdictions. However, these jurisdictions had the luxury of hiring pre-trained and often experienced GIS experts, making them a poor model for small to medium jurisdictions.

(2) GIS is more complex. Other software packages, from word processing to statistical analysis, have often been integrated into the operation of even small to medium departments without substantial training efforts. Employees learned from manuals and from each other. Unfortunately, in spite of great strides in the user-friendliness of GIS software, such software remains qualitatively more complex and challenging to implement than most existing office tools and crime reporting software presently in use in small and medium law enforcement settings.

Crime analysts who are handed a GIS function to master need to have released time to learn the systems involved, support for attending schools and conferences, and ongoing training to develop the full capabilities of their local GIS efforts. These personnel need not only training, but also the opportunity to be introduced to networks of others with similar interests for purposes of developing informal (and sometimes formal) mutual support networks. Moreover, because training is often not available locally in small to medium jurisdictions, support costs may be higher due to travel expenses.

Training is not only important, it is something which requires strong funding right from the start. Consider this comment from the Austin, TX, interview, when we asked,: "If a small to medium city was to consider instituting a new crime mapping function, what advice would you give them about what things to do before what other things?" The response was: ⁽¹⁾

"The first thing would be training ... and then time is required -- time to be able to use the data, crunch it, become familiar with it, and be able to produce a quality output, so it means something to somebody ... I just can't tell you enough about the training, training, training ... small to medium towns may not have the technical trainers in their town, but they're going to have to budget for people flying, spending time out of town, to be able to get that training. So that's something they're really, really going to have to think of, because it's not going to be out of the box, boom, there you go."

Over and over again in our survey, when asked what funding agencies could do to promote the use of GIS in small and medium jurisdictions, the answer was to fund training, as in this response from Vacaville, CA: "Fund some training! That's my big issue. A lot of agencies just give you a map and show you how to use it, but they don't teach you all the principles and practice." Or consider this statement from the Osceola County, FL, interview:

"Even more important ... would be to allocate funds for training. I cannot stress this enough. Training is of the utmost importance. You know, going to conferences is fine, it's exciting, it's stimulating, it keeps you up to pace with what's happening nationally and internationally, but unless you have that individual training to bring up your expertise and allow you to actually use the programs and do what other people are doing, then you're just on the outside looking in! And that's it."

Without training, local law enforcement agencies seeking to develop a GIS capability are forced to assume that existing personnel, usually burdened with many diverse responsibilities, can seek out and master on their own a subject matter which is highly technical in nature that in larger jurisdictions assumes staffing by individuals with substantial educational and experiential background in crime mapping. Even when highly motivated and talented local personnel exist, they are the first ones to acknowledge the need for GIS training.

Train on networking

Training needs to be conceptualized in broader terms than may traditionally be the case. The "network" is a better image than the "classroom" for what is needed. A Florida respondent noted, for instance:

"Once their software base is established, with the program and the maps, then they would probably start with the pin point maps, the simplest - which is where we're at right now, and at that point they should seek out training and conferences and getting involved in surveys like this one, you know, just to expand your knowledge of the possibilities ... "

Training is not just short courses and college credits, but also the sponsoring and funding of conferences, site visit trips, newsletters, online discussion and self-help lists, and all those things which promote networking among the community of law enforcement crime mapping staff diffused across North Carolina.

Although nearly all respondents consistently cited the training and technical support value of the national online crime mapping discussion list, and of the national conference on crime mapping sponsored by the National Institute of Justice, there is no existing state counterpart to promote crime mapping through online discussion lists and face-to-face conferences. Since small to medium jurisdictions must rely disproportionately on "free" training and technical assistance, the diffusion of crime mapping in North Carolina is impaired by the lack of a well-developed networking infrastructure. By the same token, funding of such an infrastructure would be an effective means to promote crime mapping capabilities in small and medium jurisdictions.

Training is needed for management, not just for crime mapping staff

Training is often conceptualized as something just for the staff who are to produce crime maps, but there is, if anything, a greater and earlier need for training for those who are to become the users of crime maps. This need was reflected in the Lenexa, KS, interview, which recommended "training for managers as to what they can expect from a crime mapping program, what it can do for them, and what to ask for -- something that garners top level support." Far-sighted leadership will budget for training for managerial end-users of crime mapping which brings them up to speed quickly, while not relying alone on crime mapping staff to "sell" their services to the rest of the organization, as is often the case. This burdens overworked staff with yet one more time-consuming task.

Invest equally in human resources, capital infrastructure, and operations

At the same time training is funded, there must be efforts to equip local law enforcement agencies with "the basics" in terms of suitable GIS software, boundary and street map files, and reliable databases, so that training can be translated into immediate practice on at least an experimental basis. Abstract training without implementation capability may be useful but is far less effective and often wasted. Therefore, funding for training opportunities should be tied to matching investments by the state or localities in basic infrastructure for crime mapping.

Train early

As GIS technologies become more prevalent in crime analysis and the technology is integrated into police operations, training in the use of the products should start as early as possible. As Durham Police Lieutenant J.M. Bjurstrom pointed out:

"It would be nice if they even took this [crime mapping] to the recruit level and used it in the academy so they get some knowledge of what the system is, because ... we're just learning as we go."

Plan training aimed at managerial end-users of crime mapping

An effective training effort in support of crime mapping requires a two-pronged approach, supporting not only the technical training needs of the crime analysis/crime mapping staff, but equally the managerial needs of upper law enforcement echelons who must become attuned to integrating crime mapping outputs into daily practices throughout the department. Seminars, institutes, or conferences can serve as forums for managerial sharing of best practices and for orientation of law enforcement managers to the value of spatial analysis of crime patterns.

Use existing training resources

Respondents to the survey reflected in this report mentioned a number of existing training resources pertinent to crime mapping: See Appendix B.

Chapter summary

The effectiveness of GIS in law enforcement ultimately depends not on hardware and software but instead on having well-trained analysts. GIS is a tool that augments good analysis and though mapping is a part of GIS it is only one part. Our interviewee in Rochester, NY, summarized:

"…I think there's a tremendous misconception in the field, especially higher levels of administration, as far as crime mapping, in the fact, there's a belief that GIS is only mapping, and that's not what it is. It's the smallest thing it does. It's an analytical tool…"

Training for GIS is not analogous to training for use of word processing or spreadsheets. Rather, initial training in software must be combined with broad exposure to the application of that software to crime analysis. Moreover, training is an ongoing need as the techniques of GIS as applied to law enforcement evolves in new, more sophisticated ways. Also, training cannot be reduced to technical manuals and videotapes. Actual interaction with colleagues in the field at conferences or site visits plays a critical role. Narrow concepts of training must be expanded in the case of crime mapping to includ promotion of professional sharing and networking.

Notes

1. Likewise, from the Gallatin, TN, interview:

"I think one of the things that can happen, and I think this is very much true with myself, is that you start to walk into this and you discover well, gee, I'm really feeling uncomfortable with that. So, if anything, try to give them the training and allow them to attend schools or conferences which would allow them to gather this information and synthesize it in a way that would allow them to come back and integrate it far more efficiently within the department."