ABSTRACT
In this final chapter, I draw together the various myths and threads encountered throughout the book. The concluding observations fall into five strands: projectile electric-shock weapons and the myths associated with them, (policing) technologies, key concepts in policing, theoretical developments, and implications for policy and practice. I start first with a focus on projectile electric-shock weapons, challenging the mainstream myths used by advocates of the weapon and examining the functions and legitimising effects of these myths. In section two, I argue that questioning the received myths around projectile electric-shock weapons can also lead us to re-examine more fundamental beliefs about technologies more broadly. In section three, I demonstrate that this, in turn, has implications for several foundational concepts in policing, including discretion and police subculture. In so doing, sectionss 1–3 help demonstrate the added value that can come from using Science and Technology Studies (STS) in policing studies, and in section four, I explicitly examine the theoretical implications arising from this book, both for STS and criminology, and point to future research avenues. Finally, I close the book by providing some policy recommendations for projectile electric-shock weapons and police use of force.
