ABSTRACT
This chapter provides a context through the exploration of ‘getting inside’, ‘being inside’, ‘getting onside’, and ‘being onside’. It shows that meant the individual police force agreeing to grant access and the custody officers agreeing to be observed and interviewed. As L. Skinns highlights, accountability may become an issue when civilians and/or private companies are introduced to police custody. The former colleague was a senior officer in the Police Service of Northern Ireland and had, attending numerous training days with senior officers in England and Wales. Conducting overt observational research may potentially undermine the openness and honesty of research participants; police research poses an additional challenge because of the tendency for police officers to be suspicious. A researcher’s personal biography, and in particular characteristics such as age, class, gender, and ethnicity, can have an impact upon how he or she is perceived by the police and how the researcher positions him or herself in the field.
