Crowds As Complex Adaptive Systems: Strategic Implications For Law Enforcement

Abstract

Law enforcement attempts to control unruly crowds have come under increased scrutiny in light of recent unrest in Ferguson, Missouri; Baltimore, Maryland; and other locales across the United States. Resultant criticism is forcing law enforcement agencies nationwide to review their civil-unrest policies. Crowd behavior resulting from police actions is an important component of crowd control. Viewing crowds from a systems perspective, as done in this thesis, provides powerful new insights to help law enforcement assess potential crowd behaviors. Through this new awareness, this thesis makes recommendations regarding policies, training, and equipment that law enforcement can use to make better-informed decisions related to crowd control.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Mar 01, 2016
Accession Number
AD1027470

Entities

People

  • Robert H Leverone

Organizations

  • Naval Postgraduate School

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical
  • Engineered Resilient Systems
  • Human Systems
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Adaptive Systems
  • Chemical Warfare Agents
  • Civil Rights
  • Complex Adaptive Systems
  • Game Theory
  • Geography
  • Homeland Security
  • Human Behavior
  • Law Enforcement
  • Organizational Structure
  • Personnel Management
  • Psychology
  • Recreation
  • Social Media
  • Social Psychology
  • Training
  • United States

Readers

  • Government and Public Administration Law.
  • Research Science/Academic Research
  • Systems Analysis and Design