| The history of women in law enforcement can be dated back to almost 400 years, but despite the progress that women have made in this male dominated field, women continue to experience many gender-based barriers and work-related challenges. The number of women in this field is slowly increasing, however; the number of women is still significantly less than the number of men in this field. Additionally, the number of women in top ranking positions is also very low when compared to amount of men who hold top raking positions in law enforcement. Just as the number of women in law enforcement is so limited, so is the research on women who have chosen careers in this field. By writing this dissertation, the researcher attempts to investigate the job satisfaction of female police officers and when they are more likely to seek promotional opportunities compared to their male colleagues. Additionally, sharing the results of the study will contribute to the limited data currently available on female police officers and bring awareness to the need of female officers in law enforcement and how police agencies can increase the number of females in this field by implementing programs that improve the recruitment and training of female officers as well as implementing programs that serve to mentor officers and create better working environments. |
