Toch goed dat er politie is

Good thing there’s police, after all. The rise of the police psychologist and their contribution to public-oriented municipal policing in Amsterdam, 1945-1993 Urban interactions with the public provide a way forward for Dutch police historiography. In 1966 police rooted in a parochial post-war culture clashed violently with nonconformist youth in Amsterdam. This led to the hiring of police psychologists to ameliorate relations with the public. This article examines the role of police psychologists within the Dutch police from the 1950s onwards, the strategies and vocabulary they introduced and their contribution to a modern, public-oriented police culture. Their approach to the police’s public image, underpinned by a narrative of a democratizing society, addressed emotional management in dealing with demonstrations and youngsters. They trained police to view the street as an arena of emotions, broadening their repertoire of interactions with citizens with de-escalating, preemptive negotiating tactics. The first inhouse police psychologists were caught between the police corps culture and hierarchy and the public, risking their autonomy and professional distance. Although this led to the first police psychologist’s early resignation, gradually the psychologist acquired a durable position within Amsterdam’s municipal police force.