Most researchers agree that the informal structure of policing is more important to police than the formal structure. William Westley did the first study of police subcultures in 1949. As a result officers turned to other officers for support and friendship. Police, Westley noted, would lie rather than report on the malfeasance of other officers. Jerome Skolnick identified a working personality within policing, which he differentiated from the officer s personality outside of policing.
Police tend to become highly cynical on the job.
The criminologist John Broderick identified four styles of policing. Since most police work does not consist of law enforcement, they find the job personally rewarding. Other research on police subculture has failed to support the work of Westley or Niederhoffer. Research evaluating the level of police authoritarianism has indicated that the police may be less authoritarian than the average white male . Moreover, studies of police subcultures tend to be dated.