Welcome to the RAND Center on Quality Policing

Research For Action

The RAND Center on Quality Policing (CQP) provides research and analysis on contemporary police practice and policy. By determining what practices are most cost-effective and results-oriented, the Center's work helps law enforcement agencies across the United States make better operational decisions and consistently perform at their best.

Today's police forces confront tough issues, including:

identifying the best ways to spend policing dollars
recruiting and retaining a skilled workforce
defining what it means to police effectively and then evaluating performance
improving police-community relations, such as through community policing
preventing racial profiling
reducing community violence
sharing intelligence within and across agencies
choosing the safest non-lethal weapons

Research done at the Center focuses on four interrelated areas-best practices, performance measurement, use of technology, and force planning-to deliver results that help departments solve these and other problems.

The Center is part of the Justice Policy Program within RAND Justice, Infrastructure, and Environment.

Featured Research

Crime and Violence Prevention

Helping Police Find Better Strategies to Fight Crime

Dec 14, 2018

Which policing strategies are the most effective? A new RAND toolkit aims to help law enforcement agencies identify the best approach for the situation, and the key steps to success.
Criminal Justice

Justice Policy

Nov 1, 2018

The Justice Policy program is focused on criminal and civil justice systems, including public safety, effective policing, police-community relations, drug policy and enforcement, corrections policy, use of technology in law enforcement, catastrophe and mass injury compensation, and insurance regulation.
Social Media Analysis

How Police Could Use Social Media and Social Network Analysis

Jul 18, 2018

Social media and social network analysis could help law enforcement monitor for safety threats, identify those at high risk for involvement in violence, and investigate crimes and crime networks. But computer security, privacy, and civil rights protections must be in place before using these tools.
Community Violence

Leveraging Research and Philanthropy to Reduce Crime and Violence in the Mississippi Delta

Jun 29, 2018

The crime and violence rates in the two most populous cities in the Mississippi Delta region are significantly higher than in their surrounding areas. How are foundations funding crime and violence reduction in these areas?