Professor Nick Fyfe's Outputs (27)

Development and pilot study of a university research culture questionnaire. (2025)
Journal Article
ROBERTS, R., FLIN, R., LAMB, A.J., WILLIAMS, J. and FYFE, N. 2025. Development and pilot study of a university research culture questionnaire. Research evaluation [online], (accepted). To be made available from: https://doi.org/10.1093/reseval/rvaf011

A positive working environment and culture are essential for researchers as these enable them to conduct valuable, high-quality research. Yet, university staff frequently report their research culture as less than ideal. To understand researchers' ex... Read More about Development and pilot study of a university research culture questionnaire..

Researching police reform: experiences from Scotland and the Netherlands. (2023)
Book Chapter
FYFE, N.R. and TERPSTRA, J. 2023. Researching police reform: experiences from Scotland and the Netherlands. In Martin, D. and Tong, S. (eds.) Introduction to policing research: taking lessons from practice. 2nd edition. London: Routledge [online], chapter 13, pages 199-209. Available from: https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003276456-17

In recent years Scotland and the Netherlands have both experienced fundamental transformations in the structure, organization and governance of their police systems and these changes have attracted significant research attention. Drawing on their own... Read More about Researching police reform: experiences from Scotland and the Netherlands..

Unpacking preventive policing: towards a holistic framework. (2023)
Journal Article
ELLEFSEN, H.B., BJØRKELO, B., SUNDE, I.M., and FYFE, N.R. 2023. Unpacking preventive policing: towards a holistic framework. International journal of police science and management [online], 25(2), pages 196-207. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1177/14613557231163403

Assuming that society is better off if the harm caused by crime – including the costs entailed by the investigation, prosecution and punishment – can be avoided, the proactive approach of preventive policing (PP) is generally promoted and understood... Read More about Unpacking preventive policing: towards a holistic framework..

The abstract police: critical reflections on contemporary change in police organisations. (2022)
Book
TERPSTRA, J., SALET, R. and FYFE, N.R. (eds.) 2022. The abstract police: critical reflections on contemporary change in police organisations. The Hague: Eleven International Publishing [online]. Available from: https://www.boomdenhaag.nl/en/webshop/the-abstract-police

Over the past ten to fifteen years the police in many Western European countries have undergone a series of profound organisational changes. The police now appear to operate at a greater distance from citizens, they are more impersonal and decontext... Read More about The abstract police: critical reflections on contemporary change in police organisations..

Abstract police organisations: distantiation, decontextualisation and digitalisation. (2022)
Book Chapter
TERPSTRA, J., SALET, R. and FYFE, N.R. 2022. Abstract police organisations: distantiation, decontextualisation and digitalisation. In Verhage, A., Easton, M. and de Kimpe, S. (eds.) Policing in smart societies: reflections on the abstract police. Cham: Palgrave Macmillan [online], pages 9-26. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-83685-6_2

Over the past years, police organisations in many Western European countries have witnessed a range of important changes. To gain a better understanding of these changes, a new ideal-typical concept was introduced: the abstract police. Both in their... Read More about Abstract police organisations: distantiation, decontextualisation and digitalisation..

Old, new, borrowed and blue: shifts in modern policing. (2021)
Journal Article
DAHL, J.Y, FYFE, N.R., GUNDHUS, H.O.I., LARSSON, P., SKJEVRAK, P.E., RUNHOVDE, S.R. and VESTBY, A. 2022. Old, new, borrowed and blue: shifts in modern policing. British journal of criminology [online], 62(4), pages 931-947. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1093/bjc/azab085

This article analyses ambiguity and complexity in proactive policing practices and identifies the paradox that despite the focus on increasing proactivity, police work remains strongly reactive. Drawing on a set of Norwegian case studies of policing... Read More about Old, new, borrowed and blue: shifts in modern policing..

Public policy reform and police prevention practice: a journey upstream? (2021)
Journal Article
BLAND, N., CALDER, A., FYFE, N.R., ANDERSON, S., MITCHELL, J. and REID, S. 2021. Public policy reform and police prevention practice: a journey upstream? Policing [online], 53(4), pages 1882-1893. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1093/police/paab008

This article contributes to a growing body of research on the police reforms in Scotland. It examines the particular place given to prevention in public policy and its impact on police practice. We show how public policy reconfigured the place and pu... Read More about Public policy reform and police prevention practice: a journey upstream?.

The social construction of 101 non-emergency video relay services for deaf signers. (2021)
Journal Article
SKINNER, R.A., NAPIER, J. and FYFE, N.R. 2021. The social construction of 101 non-emergency video relay services for deaf signers. International journal of police science and management [online], 23(2), pages 145-156. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1177/1461355720974703

How the police prepare for and engage with a citizen who is deaf and uses British Sign Language (BSL) is a national problem. From the perspective of deaf sign language users, the police remain largely inaccessible and unprepared in how to accommodate... Read More about The social construction of 101 non-emergency video relay services for deaf signers..

The challenges of change: exploring the dynamics of police reform in Scotland. (2019)
Journal Article
FYFE, N.R. 2019. The challenges of change: exploring the dynamics of police reform in Scotland. International journal of police science and management [online], 21(4): change and continuity in the police, pages 196-205. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1177/1461355719889463

Despite a long tradition of pessimism regarding the scope for meaningful change in police practices, recent structural reforms to police organizations in several European countries suggest that significant change in policing is possible. Drawing on r... Read More about The challenges of change: exploring the dynamics of police reform in Scotland..

Great expectations? Assessing the creation of national police organisations in Scotland and the Netherlands. (2019)
Journal Article
TERPSTRA, J. and FYFE, N.R. 2019. Great expectations? Assessing the creation of national police organisations in Scotland and the Netherlands. International journal of police science and management [online], 21(2), pages 101-107. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1177/1461355719842310

Against a background of recent structural reforms to police organisations in northern and western Europe, this paper examines the experiences of Scotland and the Netherlands where national police forces were established in 2013. Taking a comparative... Read More about Great expectations? Assessing the creation of national police organisations in Scotland and the Netherlands..

The abstract police: a conceptual exploration of unintended changes of police organisations. (2019)
Journal Article
TERPSTRA, J., FYFE, N.R. and SALET, R. 2019. The abstract police: a conceptual exploration of unintended changes of police organisations. Police journal: theory, practice and principles [online], 92(4), pages 339-359. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1177/0032258X18817999

As a consequence of the 2013 police reforms in the Netherlands and Scotland, the police in both countries have made a shift towards a fundamentally different kind of organisation: the Abstract Police. The increasing abstract character resulted in cha... Read More about The abstract police: a conceptual exploration of unintended changes of police organisations..

Experiencing organizational change during an era of reform: Police Scotland, narratives of localism, and perceptions from the ‘frontline’. (2018)
Journal Article
FYFE, N.R., ANDERSON, S., BLAND, N., GOULDING, A., MITCHELL, J. and REID, S. 2021. Experiencing organizational change during an era of reform: Police Scotland, narratives of localism, and perceptions from the 'frontline'. Policing [online], 15(1), pages 263-276. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1093/police/pay052

In 2011, the Scottish Government took the decision to create a single, national police force, reconfiguring a structure of regional police forces, which had prevailed since the 19th century. Despite a strong narrative around localism in the legislati... Read More about Experiencing organizational change during an era of reform: Police Scotland, narratives of localism, and perceptions from the ‘frontline’..

Police reform, research and the uses of 'expert knowledge'. (2018)
Journal Article
FYFE, N.R. and RICHARSON, N. 2018. Police reform, research and the uses of 'expert knowledge'. European journal of policing studies [online], 5(3): police-academic partnerships: working with the police in policing, pages 147-162. Available from: https://tinyurl.com/4pzx2f5p

This paper examines the interplay between research and police reform. Focussing on the creation of Scotland’s national police force in 2013 it examines the role of research as ‘expert knowledge’ in the political and policy debate leading up to the re... Read More about Police reform, research and the uses of 'expert knowledge'..

Police leadership in times of transition. (2017)
Journal Article
MOGGRÉ, M., DEN BOER, M. and FYFE, N.R. 2018. Police leadership in times of transition. Policing [online], 12(4), pages 388-397. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1093/police/pax041

Large-scale police reforms in the Netherlands and Scotland were accompanied by transitions in police leadership. For the purpose of comparative research, unique interview data were collected among the Dutch and Scottish strategic police chiefs who we... Read More about Police leadership in times of transition..

Outlook: paradoxes, paradigms and pluralism; reflections on the future challenges for police science in Europe. (2017)
Journal Article
FYFE, N.R. 2017. Outlook: paradoxes, paradigms and pluralism: reflections on the future challenges for police science in Europe. European police science and research bulletin: special conference edition [online], 2: selected contributions from 2006-2012 CEPOL (European Police College) European police research and science conferences, pages 309-316. Available from: https://bulletin.cepol.europa.eu/index.php/bulletin/article/view/234

In this contribution the author explores two challenges for the future development of police science in Europe. The first challenge concerns the need to become ‘smarter’ in terms of making research evidence ‘part of the conversation’ about police pol... Read More about Outlook: paradoxes, paradigms and pluralism; reflections on the future challenges for police science in Europe..

Policing 2026 evidence review. (2017)
Report
FYFE, N.R., LAYCOCK, G., KOPER, C.S., LUM, C., O'NEILL, M., STANKO, B., HENRY, A. and BROOKES, S. 2017. Policing 2026 evidence review. Edinburgh: SIPR [online]. Available from: https://tinyurl.com/ycku8nf5

Police Scotland and the Scottish Police Authority commissioned a series of evidence reviews from the Scottish Institute for Policing Research which have helped inform the development of the 2026 strategy. Written by an international group of leading... Read More about Policing 2026 evidence review..

Britain: metropolitan policing agendas in Britain: divergent tendencies in a fragmenting state? (2017)
Book Chapter
EDWARDS, A., CHAMBERS, S., FYFE, N. and HENRY, A. 2017. Britain: metropolitan policing agendas in Britain: divergent tendencies in a fragmenting state? In Devroe, E., Edwards, A. and Ponsaers, P. (eds.). Policing European metropolises: the politics of security in city-regions. Abingdon: Routledge [online], pages 201-228. Available from: https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315668130-9

This chapter draws on case study research into governing arrangements and agendas in Bristol, Cardiff, London and Edinburgh to question assumptions about the interplay of global and local social relations, elsewhere referred to as 'glocalisation', in... Read More about Britain: metropolitan policing agendas in Britain: divergent tendencies in a fragmenting state?.

Geographies of missing adults. (2016)
Other
WOOLNOUGH, P.S., STEVENSON, O., PARR, H. and FYFE, N.R. 2016. Geography of missing adults. In Greene, K.S. and Alys, L. (eds.) Missing persons: a handbook of research. Abingdon: Routledge [online], pages 123-134. Available from: https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/edit/10.4324/9781315595603-24/geography-missing-adults-penny-woolnough-olivia-stevenson-hester-parr-nicholas-fyfe

‘Every case is different [...] routine kills. I demand from my people that they look at every case from scratch as if they know nothing and it’s from looking at a case from that way that you will see some details. Some specific elements that make a c... Read More about Geographies of missing adults..

Plural policing in Europe: relationships and governance in contemporary security systems. (2016)
Journal Article
O'NEILL, M. and FYFE, N.R. 2017. Plural policing in Europe: relationships and governance in contemporary security systems. Policing and society [online], 27(1): plural policing in Europe: relationships and governance in contemporary security systems, pages 1-5. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1080/10439463.2016.1220554

References to ‘plural policing’, ‘policing beyond the police’ and the ‘extended policing family’ are now commonplace in many discussions of policing in late modern societies. There is a danger that claims about the dynamic and changing nature of plur... Read More about Plural policing in Europe: relationships and governance in contemporary security systems..

Evaluation of police and fire reform: year 1 summary report. (2016)
Report
FYFE, N., WOOLVIN, M., ANDERSON, S., BLAND, N., MITCHELL, J. and REID, S. 2016. Evaluation of police and fire reform: year 1 summary report. Edinburgh: Scottish Government [online]. Available from: https://www.gov.scot/publications/evaluation-police-fire-reform-year-1-summary-report/documents/

Police Scotland and the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) became operational in 2013 following the passing of the Police and Fire Reform (Scotland) Act in 2012. In terms of policing, the Act brought together the eight regional Police forces, th... Read More about Evaluation of police and fire reform: year 1 summary report..